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After completing the preparatory phase from November 2007 to February 2008, EMI and the government of Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC) are now on the second phase of formulating KMC’s Risk-Sensitive Land Use Plan. To start off, a strategic planning workshop was conducted last November 6-7, 2008 at the Park Village Hotel Resort in Kathmandu, Nepal. The workshop covered the following:

1. KMC’s planning system, process and approach;
2. Partnership framework among concerned city departments and development agencies;
3. Institutional arrangements; and
4. Final Terms of Reference of all partner organizations.

Local officials and technical staff from the government of KMC, the Kathmandu Valley Town Development Committee (KVTDC), Ministry of Local Development (MOLD), and the National Society for Earthquake Technology in Nepal (NSET-Nepal) attended the strategic planning workshop. The EMI Team, composed of Dr. Marqueza Reyes (Task Leader) and Marino Deocariza (Socio-economic Planner), facilitated the workshop and provided substantive technical guidance in taking the project forward. Dr. Tabassam Raza (Project Manager) also attended the workshop.

The second phase covers activities related to planning analysis using GIS, risk and vulnerability maps, drafting of ordinance based on the finished risk-sensitive land use plan, building inter-institutional arrangements, and competency building for local institutions.  

Bimal Rijal, Chief of KMC’s Urban Development Division, presented a brief overview of the land use planning practice in Kathmandu Metropolitan City. He showed the existing land use map of KMC that was completed in 2008 by the Kathmandu Valley Town Development Committee (KVTDC). Among the issues raised during the workshop were: 

1. The non-incorporation of risk parameters in the plans;
2. Competing uses of land; and
3. Conflicting interests between public and private enterprises.

EMI emphasized the value of building partnership with local stakeholders, national government agencies and the international community. The  Makati City Risk-Sensitive Redevelopment Planning project was cited as a case-in-point, where the local community, various city departments, and other relevant government agencies are being mobilized to co-share resources and responsibilities.

At the end of the workshop, the participants were able to develop the project’s work plan for Phase II that outlines the implementation team structure, roles and responsibilities, resource requirements, and potential issues and constraints at every level of project implementation.