NAIROBI, Kenya, Nov 2 – The University of Nairobi made only minor changes to its master’s curriculum in urban planning over 44 years, according to a 2015 review cited in a new World Bank report examining the quality of professional training in Sub-Saharan Africa.
The review by UN-Habitat found that the university had made limited changes to its master’s in urban planning curriculum between the programme’s introduction in 1971 and 2015.
The finding is highlighted in the World Bank report, Managing, Financing, and Governing Sub-Saharan Africa’s Rapid Urbanization, which examines whether universities are adequately preparing professionals to manage the rapid growth of African cities.
However, the 2015 assessment does not establish whether the curriculum has remained largely unchanged since then. The University of Nairobi’s published programme information indicates that its Master of Arts in Planning syllabus has been revised, although it does not state when the changes were made.
The World Bank argues that universities need to keep professional training aligned with changing urban development needs, warning that increasing the number of planners, architects and engineers without improving their skills may have limited benefits.
The report also highlights the shortage of urban professionals in Sub-Saharan Africa. Using 2019 data from selected countries, it estimates that the region had about 0.01 urban planners per 1,000 people, compared with 0.33 in the United Kingdom.
The report further cites a 2005 OECD review of 130 urban plans from 47 Sub-Saharan African countries, which found that more than half failed to anticipate urban growth or inaccurately projected the pace of expansion.
The University of Nairobi’s published Master of Arts in Planning programme covers urban and regional planning, environmental management, infrastructure and research. The university says the course prepares graduates to address challenges linked to urbanisation, population growth and resource use.
