BANGLADESH: Searching for the good life in Dhaka (video)

DHAKA, 19 May 2008 (IRIN) -
Almost 3.5 million people in Dhaka, the Bangladeshi capital, live in slums. The city is one of the fastest growing in the world with almost half a million people moving there every year, putting a huge strain on resources.

This video short focuses on 22-year-old Shahed ul-Islam. He moved to Dhaka in search of work in 2005 from a village in the western district of Bogra, but following an injury he cannot get a proper job and begs instead.

Begging in Dhaka is more lucrative for him then getting a job back in his village. Shahed lives in Dhaka Kamrangir Char, one of the biggest slums in the capital and home to an estimated 45,000 people.

He supports his family in the village by sending US$5 home every month.

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See video at: www.irinnews.org/audiofiles/Searching_for_the_good_life_in_Dhaka...052008.flv