Table 3 Numbers of Town Planners and Architects required to achieve OECD averages Country
Total Population 2018
Profession
India
1,352,617,330
Town Planners
5,0009
0.004
285,813
Architects
87,674
0.065
527,767
Town Planners
1,608
0.008
40,505
Architects
7,468
0.038
81,655
Town Planners
1,388
0.007
44,238
Architects
6,028
0.028
90,530
Nigeria Pakistan
195,874,740 212,215,030
Number of professionals
Ratio of professionals per 1,000 population
Indicative shortfall compared with OECD averages
While it is clearly both impractical and unrealistic to suggest that such ratios should or could be achieved, these figures clearly indicate a critical lack of capacity in many of the Commonwealth countries which are rapidly urbanising. Unless this issue can be effectively addressed then it is likely we will continue to experience an increasing number of unplanned or poorly planned settlements with correspondingly serious consequences in terms of social, economic and environmental well-being. Indeed, this is already being reflected in the results of the annual survey undertaken by the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network10, and a comparison between their findings in 2017 and 2019 reveals that progress towards achievement of SDG11 is: · unchanged in 23 countries · improving in only 2 countries · worsening in 10 countries Furthermore, a comparison with the 2017 survey reveals that rates of urban growth are generally increasing while the number of built environment professionals are relatively static; eg the number of architects in Uganda has increased from 178 to 221 whereas the rate of urban growth has leapt from 5.3% to 6.2% per annum. These figures become even more significant when considered in the context of projected floor area additions and climate change vulnerability, as illustrated in Figures 3 and 4. In addition to their exposure to extreme weather events such as hurricanes, many small island states are also particularly vulnerable to sea level rises. In some cases, 100% of the population is located on land below 5m elevation (see Appendix V).
9
Based on anecdotal evidence: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/ home/education/news/india-needs-3-lakh-town-planners-by-2031know-how-you-can-be-one/articleshow/67431428.cms
10 For further information, see Appendix IV 11 Source: IEZ (2017), Energy Technology Perspectives 2017, IEZ/OECD,
Paris, www.iea.org/etp. 12 Source: Verisk Maplecroft, https://www.maplecroft.com/insights/
analysis/84-of-worlds-fastest-growing-cities-face-extreme-climatechange-risks/
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Planning for climate change and rapid urbanisation