Urban Planner – National expert, Cairo, Egypt 112 views0 applications

Posting Title: Urban Planner – National expert

Department/Office: United Nations Human Settlements Programme

Duty Station: CAIRO

Posting Period: 30 July 2020 – 14 August 2020

Job Opening Number: 20-United Nations Human Settlements Programme-139112-Consultant

United Nations Core Values: Integrity, Professionalism, Respect for Diversity

Result of Service

In the light of the project titled ‘Strengthening Development Planning and Management in Greater Cairo: Priority Development Projects’, The consultant should provide a full understanding of Abdeen square renovation project through the documentation of the lessons learnt. These reports will give UN-Habitat direction in developing the Strategy of Promoting Better Quality and More Manageable Public Spaces in Cairo.

Work Location

Cairo, Egypt

Expected duration

2 months

Duties and

Responsibilities

Organizational Setting and Reporting

The UN-Habitat has the global mandate for sustainable urban development and possesses the accumulated expertise both through research and practice that is well recognized. The UN-Habitat promotes and supports the implementation of the New Urban Agenda (NUA) and the global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs 2030), as well as new and innovative ways to address current unsustainable urban development patterns in a systematic manner and at scale. Within the Strategic Plan 2020 – 2023. UN-Habitat supports the Government of Egypt to develop urban planning methods and systems to address current urbanization challenges such as population growth, climate change, poverty, inequality, pollution, congestion, as well as urban biodiversity, urban mobility and energy.

The Greater Cairo Region (GCR) is one of the world’s largest and important metropolitan areas, given its vital role as Egypt’s political and economic capital, apart from being one of the largest urban agglomerations in the Arab world, Africa and the world. Its population of 16 million people is distributed over five governorates, i.e. Cairo, Giza, al-Qalubiya, Helwan and 6th October. In light of the State policy of achieving sustainable development and in recognition of the urban, political, social and economic role GCR plays, the General Organization of Physical Planning (GOPP), as the technical arm for the Ministry of Housing, Utilities and Urban Development (MHUUD) are preparing a Long-term Strategic Development Vision for GCR. Under a technical cooperation agreement with UN-HABITAT and the GOPP, the project aims to achieve sustainable development through improving the quality of life for residents and increasing competitiveness of the region.

Short, medium and long-term action plans and leading projects are to be developed to implement this vision, through identifying the current situation, assessing various development sectors, taking into consideration their respective constituents and relative competitive advantages.

The Long-term Strategic Development Vision for GCR aims also to create job opportunities through future projects for capital and cultural asset investment, upgrading infrastructure and improving the urban environment. Emphasis will be laid on sustainable human development-oriented strategies, taking into consideration the choices of people themselves for how to live and their wish to improve their future, per their needs and the spatial identity and idiosyncrasy of the region.

Spatial scale of the study

The vision for developing inner Cairo (Khedivial Cairo)

Abdeen square and the surrounding open spaces are considered as great landmarks that possess Abdeen Palace and the official government headquarters for Cairo. The area plays important roles for the cultural heritage and the character of Central Zone of Khedive’s Cairo. The site was built on the location of a small mansion owned by Abdeen Pasha, Abdeen Palace, is considered one of the most sumptuous palaces in the world in terms of its adornments, paintings… Built by Khedive Ismail, to become the official government headquarters The Abdeen square and the surrounding open spaces are considered as great landmarks that possess. The area plays important roles for the cultural heritage and the character of Central Zone of Khedive’s Cairo. Nevertheless, space was blocked, and access was banned due to the Abdeen Palace which is designated as Presidential premises. The UN-Habitat in collaboration with GOPP and GOC successfully change dramatically the Abdeen square to be one of the outstanding effective public space in the Cairo CBD.

Reporting Line

The Consultant will work under the supervision and the of lead of the- Strategic Urban Planning and design programme manager – UN Habitat – Egypt office

Duties and responsibilities

The consultant will work closely with the Urban Planning and Design Team to fulfil the following tasks:

• Background and Project review

2. Current situation analysis
3. Design analysis, Implementation analysis and Operation analysis (pros and cons)
4. Conduct a comparison with similar case studies, and apply the methodology to achieve SDGs and lessons learned
5. Background and Project review

In this task, the applicant/consultant should review the executed project activities including:

• Design review: Review the proposed design, project vision, possible alternatives, final plans and implementation documents.
• As-built review: Review detailed plans and Contractors list while tracking the implementation process and identify the main outputs for each stage supported with photos.
• Outreaching: Review used tools for outreaching and collaboration with meant entities, published news related to the project including newspapers, journals, websites, and social media.

2. Current situation analysis

In this task the consultant should document the current situation of Abdeen square by observation, photography, questionnaires and visual surveys, this is done during different times throughout the week, with a focus on peak times and official holidays.

The purpose of this task is to investigate the mutual effects of the square on inhabitants, visitors and activities and vice versa. Therefore, the focus should be on entries and exits – the paths and directions of pedestrian – areas of street vendors, if any – and the different activities of users, which will be done throw:

• Photography – Documentary Before/After.
• Questionnaires and live interviews.
• Sketches and maps to show areas of various activities, directions and paths of movement.

3. Design analysis, Implementation analysis and Operation analysis (pros and cons)

In this task, the applicant/consultant should analyze the pros and cons of Abdeen Square, which will be done throw Design analysis, Implementation analysis and Operation analysis. Where each of the previous steps is addressed in the report in details, to indicate the most important pros and cons in each step of the project and should include the following:

• Design analysis:
• Analyze the methods used to present the design to the local community and the concerned parties, while studying the rule of each party in influencing the design decisions.
• Analyze and measure the design response to external factors and surrounding environments (neighbourhood – downtown – city).
• Analyze and measure the changes in the urban tissue in the area after the implementation and its effects on the of historical, cultural, political and social aspects of the square.
• Implementation analysis:

• Analyze the methods of submitting implementation documents and ways of selecting contractors.
• Analyze the matchings between the proposed design and project vision with implementation.
• Analyze implementation challenges.
• Analyze the amount of commitment to the timeframe of implementation.
• Analyze design elements that were changed during the implementation of the project, track the reasons behind these changes and measuring the impact of it on the project’s overall vision and goals.
• Operation analysis:
• Analyze and document all the responsible parties for managing the square and the rule of each party.
• Analyze and document the pros and cons of the management used methods and measure its impact on the objectives and elements of the project.
• Analyze and document the accrued charges in the square after implementation and during the operation, track the reasons behind these changes and measuring the impact of it on the project’s overall vision and goals.

4. Conduct a comparison with similar case studies, applied methodology to achieve SDGs and lessons learned

In this task, the applicant/consultant should conduct a comparison between Abdeen Square and

similar abroad case studies – which should be implemented through the UNHABITAT program for Public Spaces. The presented comparison should focus on the following:

• Comparison of design and objectives.
• Comparison on the applied methodology and to what extend did it apply the SDGs indicators
• Propose the KPIs to measure the success of public spaces in accordance with the NUA, SDGs and UN Habitat SP 2020-2023
• Local community participation and the role of responsible parties.
• Implementation.
• Management and operation.

Qualifications/special skills

Academic Qualifications: Bachelor’s degree in urban planning and development, Urban Design, Landscape design or architecture is required.

Experience: 5 years of progressive experience in the field of Urban Planning or Urban Design is required. Knowledge of Public Spaces issues in Egypt is desirable; Familiarity with the Egyptian Urban context and development programs and legislation with experience working with governmental institutions in the Arab region preferable Egypt is desirable.

Language: Fluency in oral and written Arabic is required. Knowledge of basic English is desirable

Additional Information

Other Skills

Knowledge of GIS, and Office programmes such as (Word, Excel and PowerPoint) and Good reporting skills is desirable with related or similar publications to the required field

No Fee

THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CHARGE A FEE AT ANY STAGE OF THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS (APPLICATION, INTERVIEW MEETING, PROCESSING, OR TRAINING). THE UNITED NATIONS DOES NOT CONCERN ITSELF WITH INFORMATION ON APPLICANTS’ BANK ACCOUNTS.