Lesson 3/33 min
Urban local government: municipalities and city corporations
Municipality (pourashava)
- The lowest self-governing urban body; headed by a mayor, with councillors for the wards
- 5-year term; governed by the Local Government (Pourashava) Act 2009
- 330 in number (Prothom Alo, October 2026)
City corporations (13 in 2026)
- Dhaka North and Dhaka South (the single Dhaka City Corporation was split in 2011)
- Chattogram, Rajshahi, Khulna, Barishal, Sylhet, Rangpur, Cumilla, Narayanganj, Gazipur
- The 12th is Mymensingh
- The 13th is Bogura: gazette of 14 May 2026, 21 wards
- The smallest unit of a city corporation is the ward; it is headed by a mayor
Watch out: The books say 12 city corporations, with Mymensingh the last. With Bogura there are now 13. For “the latest city corporation”, check the year of the question.
Did you know?: DAP stands for Detailed Area Plan, RAJUK's area plan; it has appeared as a question.
Check yourself
Which is Bangladesh's 13th city corporation?
At a glance
- 1
A municipality is the lowest self-governing urban body; headed by a mayor, 5-year term.
- 2
Dhaka City Corporation was split into North and South in 2011.
- 3
The smallest unit of a city corporation is the ward.
- 4
Mymensingh is the 12th and Bogura the 13th city corporation (gazette of 14 May 2026).