More than half the world's population now lives in urban
centres. And an increasing number of the centres are now
classed as "mega-cities" with populations of over 10 million. In
many countries the rate of urbanisation continues to outpace the
capacity of local authorities to provide land, serviced or not, at
a rate and cost to meet the need. As a result informal settlements
continue to be a regular feature in cities around the world.
With size, cities have also become increasingly
complex, socially, economically and technically. Issues of
sustainability and environmental quality are now major concerns, as
the effects of climate change make themselves felt in many urban
centres. Local governance now involves not only the management of
the city itself, but competition with other centres for attention
and investment.
In this complicated context SIPU International
can provide a useful combination of skills and services, based on
broad experience. We regularly form partnerships with engineering
companies that focus on the 'hard' aspects of infrastructure, which
we balance with competence in institutional and human resource
development, financial management, integrated and strategic
planning, local environmental management, and community
development. Whether it is upgrading of informal settlements, as in
Lusaka, Zambia; design and development of local cost housing
delivery systems, as in Kimberley, South Africa; strategic urban
development, urban information systems, and planning management
systems as in Egypt; or conducting climate change-related
sustainability reviews as in Visakhapatnam, India, SIPU can put
together teams combining its own resources with those of its
associates, to service urban and non-urban local authorities.
SIPU's wide experience in project management
means that we can also provide services at all stages of the
project cycle, and at multiple levels of urban development from
policy analysis and formulation to neighbourhood design and
implementation. We have experience in needs assessment,
participatory project formulation, implementation management,
monitoring and evaluation. Stakeholder participation is central to
how we work. While many urban projects focus on infrastructural
development, SIPU seeks to put into practise our motto "we work
with people for people."
Examples of recent urban development assignments are:
For further information please contact Tim Greehow