As I prepare to leave Bahrain after a year as an adviser to the Housing and Urban Planning Ministry’s Urban Planning and Development Authority (UPDA), I reflect on changes from 2010 to 2012, when, as project manager, I led the preparation of the National Planning and Development Strategy (NPDS) 2030 and its implementation – and also look ahead to the future.
What first struck me on being invited back was the significantly increased number of new highways, flyovers and major new developments: Marassi, The Avenues, Bahrain Bay and the incredible growth in Juffair, where I lived (but wouldn’t have dreamt of living in 2010!).
Then came improvements in Muharraq’s heritage preservation, the tourism and leisure offering, including the sensitive and high-quality enhancement of the wonderful Hawar Islands, and more public access to the coast – and advancements across the kingdom, in general.
The marvellous progress made in so many areas of urban planning and the implementation of development, infrastructure and especially improvements in the public realm demonstrate the high level of ambition and aspiration that the smallest – but most welcoming and friendly – Gulf state has set out.
Good urban planning needs ambition, but for this to be ‘delivered’ we must take into account environmental and social sustainability, combined with commercial and economic reality, to bring added value to the public interest through welcoming and inclusive buildings and spaces.
Design quality and construction implementation standards have significantly improved since my first spell here. Some key projects for the future, such as traffic congestion and connectivity need addressing. Proposals for a metro and optimising integrated ‘Transit Oriented Development’ – mixed use high-density development around the proposed stations – will bring increased passenger footfall. And therefore revenue and capital receipts for development on government-owned land need further examination with collaborative government co-ordination to support the business case.
A broadening of the tourism opportunities needs a further boost, making sure that such development respects environmental sensitivities. The wonderful tranquillity of Hawar must be preserved, and new built form footprints must be proportionate to their contexts.
The future of the kingdom remains bright, as evidenced by the tremendous resilience and solidarity of the Bahraini people during the recent regional conflict. Go Team Bahrain! I hope to be back to see future progress again.
Ian Charie
&uuid=(email))