Frank D'Hondt: World lacks specialists to implement new urban agenda

There is a global shortage of qualified urban planning specialists needed for the successful implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals and the provisions of the New Urban Agenda, Frank D'Hondt, representative of the International Society of City and Regional Planners, said during an event held within the framework of WUF13 in Baku.

According to him, international practice currently lacks even a clear understanding and statistical data regarding how many professional urban and regional planners are active in the global market.

Frank D'Hondt explained that although the Habitat Professionals Forum unites more than 15 million professionals in the field of urban development and settlement planning, only a small portion of them are actually specialists in urban planning.

"There are simply not enough of these experts to meet the expectations of the international community in the field of sustainable urban development," the speaker emphasized.

According to the ISOCARP representative, the problem is further aggravated by the rapid growth of cities, especially in countries of the Global South.

To overcome this crisis, international professional organizations need to build deeper partnerships aimed at large-scale capacity building and the training of young specialists.