At least we're not in Zimbabwe...

Well, this came out about 2 weeks ago, but in case you all missed it, the big news item was that Dhaka was ranked second worst city in the world for livabilty. The only place less livable is Harare, Zimbabwe. While we aren't sure how much any of this means and don't realy like the very value-laden term "livability," it does reflect some of the challenges this city simply must address, such as the increasingly terrible pollution, out of conrol traffic congestion, irresponsible and unregulated building construction, massive wealth disparity, and inadequate basic social services to provide for the citizens - to name a few...

All in all, it isn't something we necessarily agree with for our personal circumstance - on many days we are happier living here than in many US cities we've lived in - but it is an interesting title Dhaka can add to the list. Now it is not only in not quite the most corrupt country in the world, it is not quite the least livable place in the world!

This is the Deccan Chronicle article on it from February 14, 2010:
"Dhaka Second Worst Livable City
Bangladesh's capital Dhaka has been ranked the second worst city in the world to live in after Harare in an annual survey of livability that assesses living conditions in 140 global cities.

The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) survey report published here today put the Bangladeshi capital just ahead of Zimbabwe's capital Harare.

Dhaka scored 38.7 per cent on a scale of 0-100 to jointly become the 138th city in the world with Algiers of Algeria.

The EIU, a business information arm of The Economist Group, survey found the city of 13 million people scoring below average marks in five broad categories that the citizens most care about: stability, healthcare, culture and environment, education and infrastructure.
Vancouver of Canada, which scored 98 per cent, retained its top position, with the city offering an excellent infrastructure and low crime levels as it hosts the 2010 Winter Olympic Games.

The lowest ranked city on the list is Zimbabwe's capital Harare with 37.5 per cent score."

Here is a link to the study itself too - it is interesting to see the data.
EIU Study