TOPREC charges members on professional standard
A two day mandatory training programme jointly organized by Town Planners Registration Council of Nigeria and Nigerian Institute of Town Planners has ended in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State.
The workshop which was held at Breathforth Hotel, Uyo from 30 – 31 March, 2022 with the theme: Preparation of Bid Proposals and Procurement of Town Planning Services was part of the mandatory routine professional development programme aimed at building the capacity of registered Town Planners and other professionals on public procurement procedures in the country.
Declaring the event open, the Hon. Commissioner for Lands and Water Resources represented on the occasion by the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Lands and Water Resources, Mr. Godwin Udo, thanked the organizers of the event for choosing Akwa Ibom State as venue of the programme.
The Pamanent Secretary urged the participants to take advantage of the opportunity provided by the workshop to improve their knowledge and skills in procurement process to fit into the unfolding global challenges in the built environment.
He used the occasion to brief his visitors on several development projects embarked upon by the state Governor, Mr. Udom Gabriel Emmanuel, which he said have added to the splendor of Uyo Capital City and beyond. Mr. Udo advised the participants to take some time out to visit key sites in the State Capital to appreciate the effort of Governor Emmanuel in this regard.
Earlier, the Chairman of Nigeria Institute of Town Planners, Akwa Ibom State Chapter, Tpl. (Dr.) Emmanuel Etuk in his welcome address applauded the President of TOPREC and NITP, Tpl. Isyaku Kura, Tpl. Olutoyin Ayinde respectively and the organizing committee for choosing Akwa Ibom State as one of the centres for the training programme.
The Akwa Ibom NITP Chairman, who took time to brief the participants on the activities of his chapter said, they had earlier held a town hall meeting to discuss issues bordering on transformation of human settlements through physical planning which he said has afforded members and the public the opportunity to obtain new knowledge on planned and unplanned settlements in the country.
Other areas which came under discuss according to Mr. Etuk included the need to consciously plan settlements through Master Plan, Layout Plan and Neighbourhood Plan before development commences.
Dr. Etuk used the occasion to call on the State Governor, Mr. Udom Gabriel Emmanuel to give assent to the pending Akwa Ibom State Urban and Regional Planning Law which he said had long been passed into law by Akwa Ibom State House Assembly.
He said the law, when assented to, by the governor, will give compressive legal backing to all physical development activities in the state.
Earlier, the President of NITP, Tpl. Olutoyin Ayinde who was represented by Tpl. Nathaniel Atebiye stated that the programme was conceived to update members knowledge with a view to sharpening their skills in the practice of the profession. He said that the training was pivotal to the future of both the public and private sector practitioners.
Also speaking, the President of Town Planners Registration Council of Nigeria, Tpl. Isyaku Kura represented on the occasion by Tpl. Akpabio Ufot-Akpabio, a representative of Akwa Ibom State in the Council stated that Town Planners and allied professionals in the built environment and consultancy firms endure high vulnerability owing to weak institutional, regulatory and procurement structure which he said has constituted major constraints in service delivery in the country.
He called on participants to avail themselves of the opportunities provided by the workshop to equip themselves better saying, this will aid enhanced Town Planning Service Delivery in both public and private sector of the economy.
The workshop which later progressed to group discussion produced position papers that bothers on the theme of the workshop. These include the need to
encourage Town Planning Professionals to get clear understanding of public procurement process to enable them operate within the framework of the law.
Others hinged their submission on branding, packaging of jobs and uplifting of knowledge on generation of planning issues and bidding for jobs.
While others emphasized on transparency among members of the profession in their dealings with the public to create public confidence in their activities.
They also stressed the need for creation of directorate of planning in the relevant ministries and agencies in various organ of the government.
Other sub topics discussed in the two day workshop includes: Critical Review of Procurement Policy, Concepts and Practices in Nigeria, Understanding Public Procurement Process for Effective Service Delivery and Preparation of Bid Proposals for Town Planning Services.
The workshop has since come to a close with fanfare.
