Buildings, like almost all physical objects degrade over time due to a combination of factors. The deterioration affects all components and parts of the building in different ways, gradually reducing the quality of the structure and adversely impacting the building’s ability to effectively perform its basic functions in an environment. This paper relied on a systematic review of published literatures in reputable databases to examine how building developments and public environments can be designed in tropical climates to require minimal maintenance activities to enhance the ease of executing such activities. 39 open access published documents were reviewed. Data sieved from the publications were content analysed and descriptively presented in themes. The study identified principles and methods which can be implemented in the design of buildings with a focus on maintainability towards enhancing the development of sustainable public buildings and environments in tropical climates. The review promotes maintenance culture and emphasises increased consideration for maintenance in building design, which further helps to promote the eleventh target of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals that aims at the development of resilient, safe and sustainable communities, cities and human settlements. The paper is instructive to researchers, scholars, students of architecture and building design, as well as policy makers on issues surrounding the principles of designing for maintainability, particularly in tropical settings.