As Afghan cities and towns grow rapidly and irreversibly, they are faced with resource and capacity constraints to manage the process of urbanization. Strategic planning (rather than traditional master-planning) is an essential tool for managing urban growth and expanding access to services in already crowded and largely-informal cities. Through a participatory process the direction of development in a city or urban area is determined, change is managed and quality of life improved.

As part of the “City for All’ programme,  Strategic Action Planning workshops were held in Kabul District 5 and 13 and on city level in Mazar-e-Sharif, during the first half of the month of March. In each of the workshops 100-150 participants including youth, kids, women, disabled, farmers, vendors and businessmen discussed their future visions. In addition, representatives from the Municipalities, Nahia (district) Heads, Afghan Land Authority (ARAZI), Ministry of Urban Development and Housing (MUDH) and UN-Habitat staff participated.

The overall purpose of the workshops and process is to develop a base for future planning and development through the prioritization and visions of the communities. During the workshops the local stakeholders agreed on priority interventions for their district based on the key challenges identified.

District 5 is one of the most populated districts in Kabul facing challenges of lack of basic services, public spaces and public facilities.  “We have been facing damaged roads, unpaved streets, unhealthy drinkable water and a weak sanitation system and we live with the fear that the government or landlords may someday occupy our unplanned houses” said by Mr. Fazal Hadi Farid head of Nahia 5. He added “we don’t have enough clinics to meet people’s needs and the municipality cleaning and sanitation teams don’t have enough capacity and staff to access all parts of district 5. He thanked UN-Habitat for its sustainable development support and partnership with Kabul Municipality and ARAZI in the implementation of “City for All” programme.

The District 13 Strategic Nahia Action Plan (SNAP) process is led and implemented by Municipality staff as part of the capacity building strategy, with technical advice from UN-Habitat. The first priority of the community was to create job opportunities for women and youth. Besides that, most participants emphasized the importance of primary education for all and proposed new primary schools to be built within the district.

The Strategic Municipal Action Plan (SMAP) workshop in Mazar-e-Sharif focused on the vision for the development of the whole city. “Planning should not only result in good infrastructure and better functioning city, but it should also create businesses and job opportunities, especially for the youth” a representative from the youth group in Mazar- e- Sharif said. Waste Management was pointed out as the main challenge and need for improvement in the city.

The “City for All” programme is one of the flagship projects under the Urban National Priority Programme (U-NPP) of Afghanistan. The overall objective of the programme is to improve stability and stimulate local economic development in 8 target cities through enhancing municipal governance and strengthening the social contract between citizens and the state. The programme consists of three fundamental components: (i) effective land management and clear land rights and responsibilities; (ii) strategic urban planning to guide investments and establish a common vision for an inclusive and prosperous urban future; and (iii) improved municipal governance and citizen engagement and representation. As part of the programme the Municipalities in 8 provinces develops Strategic Municipal Action Plans (SMAPs) for each Municipality and Strategic Nahia Action Plans (SNAPs) for each Nahia in Kabul city with the technical support of UN-Habitat and financial support of European Union and USAID. Implementing partners are MUDH, Independent Directorate of Local Governance/Deputy Ministry of Municipalities and ARAZI. Up to date 5 SNAP workshops have been held in Kabul and 42 SNAP workshops and 2 SMAP workshop have been held in Mazar-e-Sharif, Herat, Jalalabad, Kandahar, Bamyan, Nilli and Farah.