Union Minister for Construction HE U Han Zaw delivering
the Opening speech
4 June 2018, Nay Pyi Taw – Myanmar’s Union Construction Minister H.E. Mr. U Han Zaw opened a national workshop and consultation on the National Urban Policy (NUP) Framework for the country. The workshop validated the priority areas in the framework, i.e. municipal governance and finance, urban and regional legislation, land governance, housing and environmental and climate change issues.
Experts from UN-Habitat, OECD with the Ministers
The workshop was hosted by the Ministry’s Department of Urban and Housing Development (DUHD) and attended by high representatives of Nay Pyi Taw Council and from the fourteen States and Regions as well as specialists of the ADB, OECD, SKL (Sweden) and UN-Habitat. The Regional and Metropolitan Planning Unit of UN-Habitat leads the programme, with support of the Republic of Korea.
Bijay Karmacharya, UN-Habitat, Myanmar Country Programme
Manager Delivering Welcoming remarks
Ministers from the State/Region governments
At the start of the meeting, H.E. U Han Zaw set out his expectations, stating that “as Myanmar transits towards democracy and a better future for all of its citizens the Government is sparing no effort to bring its standards and norms up to international standard. Myanmar aspires to an international model for forward planning of sustainable urban development.”
Mr. Bijay Karmacharya, Country Programme Manager of UN-Habitat in Myanmar, concurred by saying that a solid NUP Framework will pave the way for more systematic growth and sustainable urban development within the country, for a brighter, resilient and sustainable future of Myanmar.
The Deputy Director General of DUHD, Mrs. Daw Aye Aye Myint, spelled out the workshop objectives and provided an overview of the NUP Framework. Dr. Ulrich Graute, representing the Regional and Metropolitan Planning Unit in UN-Habitat’s Headquarters, discussed the ways NUP Frameworks should support sustainable urbanization. Mr. Bijay Karmacharya localized the messages, in relation to Myanmar’s development challenges and priorities. Active group discussions validating of priority areas of the NUP Framework.
The initiation of National Urban Policy Development in Myanmar started in December 2014 with the preparation of a National Urban Policy Note, outlining the broad themes and topics to be addressed by the National Urban Policy. The Ministry of Construction, with the technical assistance from UN-Habitat, then produced the Rapid Urban Diagnostic Report for Myanmar (RUDRMYA). The Report was finalized in February 2016 in consultation with senior advisors and officials of DUHD of the Ministry.
In the wake of the approval of the New Urban Agenda at Habitat III in Quito, October 2016, the Government made the development of a NUP Framework even more a priority. Based on the findings of RUDRMYA, the National Urban Policy Framework (NUP-F) was completed in early 2017. This NUP Framework offers now an outline and an entry point for consultative policy dialogues and discussions vertically with sub-national entities (State and Region Governments) and horizontally with the relevant line Ministries as well as stakeholders in civil society and development partners in the urban sector.
