Prime Minister Tarique Rahman has directed the establishment of at least one sports playground in every union across Bangladesh to ensure the physical and mental development of children, adolescents, and youth, while securing a healthy, beautiful, and sports-friendly environment.
In addition, he has instructed authorities to establish at least 1,000 playgrounds nationwide within the next two months.
Tarique issued these directives on Thursday during a meeting held at the Cabinet Division in Secretariat regarding union-based playground establishment and expansion of sports activities.
Emphasising the implementation of pledges made in the election manifesto, he instructed that at least one playground be ensured in every union, kept open to the public, and maintained in a playable condition year-round.
Urban fields, khas land identification
To resolve field shortages in the capital, Tarique ordered that at least one playground be ensured for every two to three wards in the Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC) and Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) areas.
As part of this initiative, plans were presented to render 40 fields suitable for sports in the DNCC area and 90 fields in the DSCC area by December, with discussions also taking place on running regular sports activities on these grounds.
During the meeting, it was informed that steps have been taken to construct playgrounds across 4,599 unions in the country in phases, with 403 pieces of khas land already identified across 27 districts for this purpose.
Each field is planned to measure between a minimum of three and a maximum of eight bighas. Moreover, it was announced that one sports officer will be appointed in each upazila to manage field maintenance and regular sports operations.
Nationwide sports programme
A union-level sports programme covering 10 events – including football, cricket, volleyball, and badminton – is planned to engage approximately 1.4 million (14 lakh) adolescents. The prime minister will officially inaugurate this sports programme simultaneously across 503 upazilas on 5 November, launching it from Khulna.
The meeting also stressed the necessity of activating existing upazila stadiums to make them fit for sports, recovering encroached playgrounds, and introducing regular sports and club activities in every school.
In addition, Tarique directed relevant ministries and agencies to work in a coordinated manner over the next five years to build a healthy, beautiful, and sports-friendly generation while preserving all playgrounds and maintaining sports and cultural activities year-round.
The meeting was attended by Education Minister ANM Ehsanul Hoque Milon, Minister for Relief and Disaster Management Asadul Habib Dulu, State Minister for Local Government, Rural Development and Co-operatives Mir Shahe Alam, State Minister for Youth and Sports Md. Aminul Haque, Dhaka North City Corporation Administrator Shafiqul Islam Khan, Dhaka South City Corporation Administrator Abdus Salam, and Prime Minister’s Adviser Mahdi Amin.
Following the meeting, Haque briefed journalists in detail regarding the decisions and action plan.
