Spatial Planning Expert Advocates For Strong Institutional Collaboration To Achieve SDGs Goal 11

Strong Institutional Collaboration Needed To Achieve SDG 11.

By thefourlens.com

Odumase, February 25, 2023

There is a critical need for a strong collaboration between Physical Planners and Surveyors to facilitate achievement of goal 11 of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), Ms Gifty Nyarko, the Director in charge of Physical Planning at the Sunyani West Municipal Assembly has realized. 

She noted that Surveyors play very important role in city planning and its development, therefore planners need surveyors to translate the plan unto the ground for effective implementation of the local plans. 

Ms Nyarko was speaking in an interview with thefourlens.com at Odumase, the Sunyani West Municipal capital in the Bono region.

The interview was on the proliferation of haphazard developments and its negative impacts on the current and future generations, climate change and the attainment of SDGs.

She said surveyors will also bring the resurveyed plan to the planners and if this collaboration is strong it will go a long way to reduce the rate of haphazard developments in the country.

According to Ms Nyarko, there is a clear cut difference in the duties of Planners and Surveyors, but some  “Planners have now turned to Surveyors and some Surveyors also turned to Planners this time around”, hence this could be a  contributing factor to haphazard developments if this issue is not well addressed.

She explained with worries that “the problem in question is further reinforced by land owners and Traditional Authorities who usually misconstrue development permit to evidence of land ownership documents such as indunture, statutory declaration, title deeds and lease.

Ms Nyarko told thefourlens.com that “these land owners give verbal authorization to prospective developers to build without due regards to the District Assembly which is the highest planning authority”. 

Again, “some traditional Authorities and land owners assumes themselves as planners and surveyors”.

She accentuated that the duty of a Planner is different from a Surveyor although, the functions of the two professionals are complementary in nature.

Ms Nyarko therefore pleaded with land owners and Traditional Authorities to “avoid the use and services of quack surveyors”. 

She attested to the fact that Traditional Authorities are relevant stakeholders in the planning of physical developments but entreated them to use the right channel and hire the services of qualified surveyors.

Ms Nyarko stressed that strong collaboration is much needed so that each professional would realize his or her operational mandate and exhibit a high sense of professionalism and effective service delivery in the endeavors of both Planners and Surveyors. 

In that regard, she opined that he SDGs Goal 11 that is geared towards the attainment of sustainable cities and  communities as a means  of making cities and human settlements safe, inclusive, resilient and sustainable would be realized.

Ms Nyarko further stated ensuring access to safe and affordable housing to accommodate everyone and meet the World’s population demand is also an indepensable aspect of SDG 11.

She admitted that haphazard buildings are as well causing severe extinction of minor streams and water bodies in the community.

 Therefore, achieving SDG 11 would also help to mitigate climate change and its adverse impact and subsequently help attain goals 13, 14 and 15 which imply an improved life below water and life on land.

Thefourlens.com

Writer’s email: ttchrietoph1@gmail.com