أرشيف الوسم: Transparency

Every now and then, GCC citizens wake up to a new announcement for the launch of another novel megaproject. These megaprojects often share the same promises and goals, such as creating financial centers, attracting foreign investments, job creation, transfer of knowledge, an alternative income stream, or economy diversification. Past projects include Silk city in Kuwait, NEOM and the unique Line in KSA, the Duqm in Oman as well as many others. Unfortunately, the problem is that more often than not, these mega builds deliver on only a fraction of their stated promises.

The primary issue with these megaprojects is their clear lack of citizen participation. Despite elaborate marketing campaigns directed at the public, the projects rarely manifest from community input or interests. Lofty promises are made by organizers, and citizens remain skeptical. Further, these ambitious plans ask citizens to make sacrifices and contribute to their success, even though community members feel alienated throughout the process.

We cannot deny the positive impacts generated by these projects and the wide international coverage they receive. They infer attempts to move the stagnant economy and escape the repetition of traditional endeavors that proved unsuccessful in the past. Nevertheless, we must raise some worthy questions, as projects of this scale should not pass without careful study and examination. If the project fails, it’s very difficult to undo without high economic, social, and environmental costs.

Here are the questions to ask when considering a megaproject:

• Do the GCC countries have the luxury of investing future generations’ funds for immature/high-risk projects?
• Are these projects worth risking untouched land that is financially and environmentally costly to develop while ignoring existing urban centers suffering from complex problems and when GCC countries face an unprecedented lack of financial/human resources?
• Can the Arabian Peninsula accommodate an additional influx of migrant workers, population, tourists, and consumers? Were the associated environmental and financial costs resulting from further urban sprawl and population expansion taken into consideration?
• Will GCC countries truly benefit from this project, or does it only serve to add another item on the portfolio of international mega consultancies and contracting companies?
• Should national investments of this scale necessitate more citizen participation?

In this moment, we are moving against the current. Nations worldwide invest in wise valuable projects where the environment, conservation, and recycling are all priorities. Advanced nations approach projects with an intense analysis of cost and returns. Contemporary successful projects are local, compact, smart, and efficient, while our present proposals are foreign, mega, conventional and wasteful.

The “Before It’s Too Late” report was prepared by 29 Kuwaiti academics who set out to shed a light on the dire state of Kuwait’s economy. The report included a call for major reforms to correct the current trajectory of Kuwait’s chaotic urban sprawl and rescue the general condition of the State while it is still possible.

The report states that “the sustainability of the welfare state for future generations is not possible without sacrifices and concessions made by our current generation.”*  In this context, reforming Kuwait’s urban growth model is key to its overall transformation. Although the model of urban growth that Kuwait followed for more than 50 years may have been suitable when the population was limited and the resources vast, it is no longer appropriate or sustainable.

After many years of explosive population growth and a surge in spending and subsidiaries coupled with wasting resources and missing opportunities to create a productive sector, many challenges have arisen. Thus, we are obliged to reconsider our urban growth policies and unwise expansion, which is the source of massive governmental and individual wastage.

Reestablishing urban development in Kuwait on sustainable principles that protect the rights of future generations must be made a priority. The first step toward this goal is to control the model of chaotic urban sprawl, which is rejected worldwide due to its disastrous effects on the economy and environment.

Chaotic urban sprawl has a negative economic impact, as the segregated new cities require the construction of new roads, infrastructure, and services. They also require the employment of many services and an administrative workforce that would increase the State’s spending. This cost is felt now, and in the near future, it would constitute heavy obligations, which the State may not be able to keep.

The model employed today provides a single housing option that drains the state’s and the individual’s budget. Moreover, this model forces families to spend their entire savings on the procurement of housing, leaving them in debt for the rest of their lives. This cost does not even include the price of furnishing and maintaining large homes secluded on the outskirts with inadequate amenities. Also, in the future, the peripheries would receive the least amount from municipal and public services and become locations of complex economic and social problems.

The chaotic urban sprawl negatively impacts the environment. Urban sprawl consumes natural land, destroys the environment, and increases greenhouse gas emissions that result from a dependency on private vehicles and road usage. These factors contribute to increased temperatures as well as other climatic disasters, such as seasonal floods.

Chaotic urban sprawl also imparts a negative social impact in addition to its economic consequences. Chaotic urban sprawl increases class disparity and hinders the creation of coherent communities. The secluded urban setting, the time spent on roads, the large distance between home and work, and the lack of physical movement directly impact psychological and physical health.

We must take a stance while it is still possible and reconsider our urban development model. We need to choose a sustainable approach that meets our aspirations and protects the rights of future generations. Decision makers should urgently take these steps:

• Review the state’s master plan and reevaluate the location of future housing cities to ensure their suitability and efficiency, measuring their life cycle cost based on real givens.
• Conduct detailed studies on the existing metropolitan area, consider the possibility of redistributing land-uses, and introduce new land-uses that correspond with current conditions, requirements, and circumstances.
• Update housing design criteria and establish highly efficient guidelines that consider long-term costs and meet economic and environmental standards.
• Revise current building regulations and produce new ones that propose alternative housing options that accommodate different families and individuals.

… Before it’s too late!

• *kuwaitimpakt.com

For years, Kuwait has continued to face a major development crisis, and this is evident by the composite model that combines administration failure and addiction of wasteful (welfare) policies. The current paradigm exacerbates our economic and social problems, as we are witnessing widespread administrative and financial corruption.

Each passing day, citizens are confronted with tremendous pressures, and the middle class is losing many of its gains, while the individual is confronted with difficulties and an increasingly nebulous future.

Urban planners promote plans that meet development goals, which are long-term, sustainable, protect resources and the environment, and consider the rights of future generations. Further, planners rely on scientific theories and utilizes technical sensible tools to evaluate alternatives and make decisions. On the other hand, public opinion is led by pulpit groups that focus on an emotional and rhetorical narrative that is generally weak, simple, and opposes elites and governmental policies. It seeks to form a link between professional opinion and authority.

The populist play on the existing class division in society, and their rhetoric lack sound sense. It tends to encourage consumption demands and wasteful government spending despite their feasibility. This populist front is accepted and widely supported because it relies on the overall frustration as well as the failure of the democratic system to meet the ambitions of its citizens. Frustrations such as these spread the feeling of injustice and an inability to control its destiny.

At this moment, populists own public opinion through direct communication and controlling media platforms, especially social media. The populist movement began to lead plans, guide governmental proprieties, and determine the future of the country in all sectors including urban planning.

Under these difficult times, professionals must face mainstream populism head-on and reinstate professionalism and common sense. This can be achieved through:

• Building trust in professional, especially, urban planners;
• Engage in public discussions and debates and address the common citizen;
• Reform our democratic system for better representation and efficiency;
• Restructuring bureaucratic systems that became an obstacle to meet development plans;
• Reinforce awareness about the role of master plans in the creation of quality life;
• Establish transparency measures and integrity government to regain trust in authorities’ decisions;
• Empower the municipal council and expand its representation as well as broadening its powers and jurisdictions on municipal matters.

The Covid-19 pandemic has affected our lives in many ways, and just like the rest of the world, social and economic sectors in Kuwait suffered greatly. A tremendous impact on individuals and institutions has been seen as a result.

While the world is adapting gradually to the pandemic and we have started the gradual reopening of the economy and returning to our previous way of life, we must pause and analyze the experience that we have been through since February 2020, and draw a new trajectory for the future.

Our urban paradigm is one of the most critical aspects that needs to be reviewed and given careful consideration. We need to realize that the identification of a new urban model is crucial for ensuring future prosperity and sustainability. This Post-Pandemic Urban Paradigm should be built on seven fundamental pillars:

Leadership and administration:

The sudden occurrence of the pandemic and the measures that followed have to provide us a lesson in the importance of selecting leaders and managers based on their merit and qualifications. In times of difficulty, the state can only face challenges with a strong team of qualified, experienced, and wise leaders.

We have to put emergency plans in place, ready for implementation, and support them logistically in a way that allows our cities to face disasters of all kinds. Following the path of leading cities around the world, we have to be crisis-ready and prepared for the worst. It seems that the world is moving into a period of instability, where constant change will be the new norm.

Priority setting:

High oil revenues that we have enjoyed since our independence allowed us to follow a specific developmental path. This path formulated the urban environment in Kuwait and contributed to the creation of certain consumption habits and ways of life that have characterized the Kuwaiti and GCC citizens.

However, the pandemic and its consequences must force us to rearrange our development priorities and re-evaluate our lifestyles as individuals. The government has a more significant role in identifying a smarter spending scheme and addressing the following:

• Spending wisely and paying more attention to the long-term cost of megaprojects.
• It is time to bring the environment to the forefront of our priorities. We must address the environmental impact of urban projects and realize the high cost of urban sprawl and its consequent effects on transport and the side costs of infrastructure, energy, and water. We need to be aware of the adverse effects that this leaves on our natural environment (seas and desert) and their condition for future generations.
• Perhaps we must consider focusing on the development of existing mismanaged urban land and find better ways to wisely utilize it, rather than moving toward continued urban sprawl. It is more economically and environmentally feasible to repurpose existing neighborhoods and to additionally rehabilitate old buildings and structures to serve our emerging needs in the post-pandemic era.

Smart systems:

The pandemic has illustrated that cities that employed smart systems before the crisis benefited from these technologies to collect and analyze data and manage procedures. Thus, we must take firm steps toward equipping our urban environment with smart systems that empower our cities to utilize the latest technologies. These would manage security, public transport, emergency services, entertainment, and other services while taking into consideration the legal aspects to protect an individual’s rights and privacy.

Modern technologies and tools can improve the quality of life in cities and contribute to protecting the public during emergencies, such as:

• Provide open access sharing platforms that allow citizens to submit information that may serve decision-makers.
• Solicit community efforts to participate in solving local challenges.
• Support the digital economy as a central component, especially during the pandemic.
• Activate social media platforms to create a positive public domain, to compensate for the diminishing public spaces.

Population density and composition:

The pandemic has brought with it feelings of fear of high population densities in urban areas. Citizens have expressed concerns over a lack of resources and health services. They are increasingly worried about shanty town housing in places like Jleeb, Farwaniya, and other areas.

There have been calls for a decrease in population size and applying pressure to ex-pat workers, all the while acknowledging a real problem within the population and a high percentage of exploited unorganized workers and the spread of the illegal work contracts trade. The problem is complex and requires careful study and a proper plan that achieves high social and economic returns. Thus, we should seek to fix the quality of the population rather than merely its quantity.

The quality of homes and residential neighborhoods:

Houses and residential neighborhoods are the main components of any city; thus, they demand special attention. During the Covid-19 pandemic and the various levels of lockdown, cities should review their design and pay more attention to the quality of residential neighborhoods to ensure the welfare of its residents. It is time to focus on urban design and implement small interventions to improve local environments, such as:

• Develop local parks, children’s playgrounds, and youth sports fields.
• Build upon the success of the walking tracks within residential neighborhoods, and develop a model of linear parks that raises the quality of the tracks and the overall environment.
• To support the efforts of the Cooperative Societies, which played a critical role during the pandemic, and provided valuable services to local communities. Coops must be enabled to be engaged more in the provision of various social, commercial, and urban services, to create local independence and sufficiency within residential neighborhoods. Thus, lowering the need for travel.

Public transport:

The pandemic shocked the basis of urban services and caused significant doubt in the role of cities, high-density urban areas, and public transport.

Before the pandemic, Kuwait was suffering from severe traffic problems and a high dependency on private vehicles. The average Kuwaiti spends at least one hour a day commuting to work, and the state spends billions of dollars in road improvement and expansions, and tens of millions on annual road maintenance.

After the pandemic, it will be time to review our planning model and seek feasible alternatives. World cities are transforming and redesigning their road networks to create a better urban milieu:

• More emphasis must be given to pedestrian networks, to encourage walking, observe social distancing, and to provide the highest levels of comfort and safety for all.
• Redesign our roads to provide adequate bicycle lanes, achieve safety and comfort to encourage more use.
• Allocate special lanes for public transport (buses and taxis), to increase efficiency and encourage more use.
• Increase spending on public transport to improve their quality and fulfill health and safety requirements to attract more users of all ages and economic backgrounds.
• Encourage working from home and plan for a diversity of uses to decrease the need for travel, thus reducing traffic congestion.

Health and hygiene:

The pandemic illustrated the importance of urban health and hygiene. Kuwait Municipality spends enormously on waste collection contracts, which employs tens of thousands of laborers to keep our neighborhoods clean. However, the pandemic and its consequences must lead us to find better ways to manage waste and keep our cities clean. Aspects we should consider:

• Change of personal habits and adopting wiser practices to lower our waste and increase recycling.
• Increase fines for environmental pollution and waste.
• Encourage individuals and establishments to participate in efforts to manage waste and allocate central locations within neighborhoods and blocks to dispose of waste, which will decrease the need for laborers and trash collection trucks. This decrease will also lower the cost of waste management contracts.
• It is time to equip new neighborhoods with automated waste collection systems, which will lower the dependency on laborers and trucks while reducing the visual pollution that results from the distribution of garbage containers.

While the Covid-19 pandemic has affected almost every aspect of life, it is vital to learn lessons from it when planning for the future. The identification of a new urban model for this Post-Pandemic Urban Paradigm has been outlined in this article through seven fundamental pillars. From ensuring competent leadership to rearranging our priorities, the implementation of smart systems and fixing issues inherent to our population, ensuring the quality of our homes and residential neighborhoods, and finally providing urban health and hygiene, we can be crisis-ready during periods of instability.