Prime Minister Raila Odinga is routing for proper planning for the country to fulfil the expanded Bill of Rights contained in the new constitution.
Speaking when he officially opened the 46th International Society of City and Regional Planners (ISOCARP) Congress at the UN headquarters in Gigiri, he said planning is going to be critical as driving force to the realisation of the benefits of our new constitution and our Vision 2030.”
“Planning will be critical to us if we are to make the dreams of Kenyans as captured in Chapter Four of our new constitution regarding the expanded Bill of Rights,” Mr Odinga told close to 1000 delegates from across the world attending the conference on urbanisation and planning being held in Kenya for first time.
He said provisions like equality of the sexes, the right to health care, accessible and decent housing and sanitation, freedom from hunger and access to adequate food, clean environment and access to justice “will all depend on how well we plan our affairs as a nation.”
The PM who was accompanied by Cabinet ministers Soita Shitanda, James Orengo (Lands) Chris Obure (Public Works) and Njeru Githae (Nairobi Metropolitan Development) added that planning is going to be critical in facilitating county governments with regard to identifying resource potential and opportunities in the regions and measures for sustainable exploitation.
“Our planners need to put forward a system that would work best for the country in light of the devolution that we have adopted. That system should provide for national integration while recognising regional diversity as a means to positive development,” Mr Odinga said.
Also present were UN Habitat executive director Joan Clos, Ismael Fernandez Mejia (President of ISOCARP) and Architectural Society of Kenya chairman Stephen Oundo.
The PM said the participants should propose appropriate strategies to reduce inter and intra imbalances that exist in developing countries that has resulted in undesirable divide in the society especially in urban areas. He also called for technical assistance through Urban Planning Advisory Team to developing countries.
“This will enable our various national governments effectively face challenges of urbanisation,” Mr Odinga said.
He also called professionals to adhere to ethics and national values like patriotism, national unity, democracy, human dignity, good governance, social justice, human rights, integrity and sustainable development.
“The extent to which professionals remain true to these values will determine how soon the citizenry will migrate from abject poverty to acceptable living standards through access to decent and adequate housing, good health, freedom from hunger, access to clean and safe water as well as clean and healthy environment. On you depends the sustainability of human settlements,” Mr Odinga said.
He regretted that the country has witnessed unregulated urban growth leading to rapid emergence of slums, shortage of decent housing and low provision of infrastructure, poor urban transport, traffic jams, rising crime and vulnerability to disasters such as fires and collapsing buildings.
Mr Shitanda said the conference whose theme is “Sustainable City, Developing World,” comes at a time when more Kenyans are seeking livelihoods in urban areas. The recent census said 32 percent of Kenyans live in urban areas.
Mr Shitanda expressed the government’s commitment to providing an enabling environment to ensure realisation of right of Kenyans to housing.
“Well planned housing and infrastructure of acceptable standards and affordable costs when combined with essential services, affords dignity, security and privacy to the individual, the family and the community as a whole. Adequate shelter also prevents social unrest occasioned by depravity and frustrations of people living in slums and informal settlements,” Mr Shitanda said.
He said governments cannot talk of sustainable development when the magnitude of the population inadequately employed and has little access to basic urban infrastructure and services.
He said the government has put in place an ‘incentives package’ to encourage foreign entrepreneurs to invest in housing sector.
“Kenya has embarked on public private sector partnership arrangements to facilitate investments in real estate but with adequate safeguards to protect consumers, especially low income earners,” Mr Shitanda said.
Source: Daily Nation
