On January 19, 2026, Oriental Consultants Global Co., Ltd. (OC Global; Headquarters: Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo), acting as the lead firm of a joint venture*, held a groundbreaking ceremony for the Fire Service Headquarters Building under the Urban Building Safety Project in Bangladesh, for which the Company is providing consulting services covering detailed design, bidding assistance, and construction supervision.

The ceremony was attended by representatives from Bangladesh, including the Secretary of the Ministry of Housing and Public Works (MoHPW) and the Director General of the Bangladesh Fire Service & Civil Defence (FSCD). From Japan, attendees included the First Secretary of the Embassy of Japan in Bangladesh and the Chief Representative of the JICA Bangladesh Office. Construction of the building will be undertaken by TOA Corporation.

* Joint Venture Members: Oriental Consultants Global Co., Ltd.; DAIKEN SEKKEI, INC.; Development Design Consultants, Ltd.

From the fourth-left: Secretary, Ministry of Housing and Public Works (MoHPW)
From the third-right: Director General, Bangladesh Fire Service & Civil Defence (FSCD)
From the first-left: First Secretary, Embassy of Japan in Bangladesh
From the fifth-left: Chief Representative, JICA Bangladesh Office

Mr. Miyatake Kazuhiro, Project Manager of the Project, OC Global, delivering an address at the groundbreaking ceremony.

Bangladesh is a country with a high seismic risk, having experienced multiple earthquakes of magnitude 7 or greater in the past approximately 150 years. In particular, the Dhaka Metropolitan Area, where the nation’s political and economic functions are concentrated, has seen a rapid accumulation of high-rise buildings. At the same time, many existing structures do not sufficiently comply with seismic standards, making the enhancement of building safety an urgent issue for mitigating potential earthquake damage.

This Project supports two-step loans that contribute to the promotion of seismic retrofitting of private buildings, as well as the seismic strengthening of public buildings. As part of these efforts, a Fire Service and Civil Defence Headquarters Building will be constructed in Dhaka, comprising one basement level and ten above-ground floors. The facility will adopt a base-isolation structural system, which will be the first application of this technology in Bangladesh, in order to ensure both structural safety and functional continuity during emergencies in the event of an earthquake. In addition, the building will incorporate a rainwater harvesting system, energy-efficient air-conditioning, automatically controlled lighting, and a Building Energy Management System (BEMS). Through the effective use of resources and the reduction of energy consumption, these measures will enable stable and sustainable facility operation over the long term.

Through this Project, which marks an important milestone in the development of disaster-resilient public infrastructure, efforts will be made to enhance emergency response capacity in Bangladesh and to protect human lives and property.

Through the Urban Building Safety Project, OC Global supports the development of disaster-resilient public infrastructure and the creation of safe and secure communities in the country.