Marksman Posted April 6, 2012 Hello everyone. This is my first post and excuse me for my errors in spelling if I make them, since I'm residing in the Netherlands. I'd like to talk about Somalia and the rebuilding of the country. I do know that our country has a long way to go, but I still believe it's important to talk about these matters. I'm mainly interested in urban planning and conserving heritage sites. Looking at other major cities such as Nariobi, Kenya, Kampala in Uganda and Kigali, Rwanda I can see that urban planning is one of the major topics in East Africa. I find that thoughtful urban planning can make cities extremely competitive and help economies grow fast. Kigali, Rwanda urban planning Kigali, Rwanda urban planning Of course these examples are not directly applicable for cities such as Mogadishu yet. But I'd like to talk about some ideas that could be helpful in Mogadishu for the city and business life. Rebuilding of heritage sites Tourism can be a huge influx of money (direct and indirect) for the capital and also for other cities in Somalia. The rebuilding of heritage sites is important for tourism and conserving heritage, culture and history. The city centre of Mogadishu (was) extremely rare and unique in the world. This can be a place where many people from the world would come to see. That is why I think these heritage sites should be rebuild with great care and in their original form if possible. Bike trails Bike trails throughout the city can help people getting to their jobs quickly and promote a healthy way of living. It is also important to stop cities in Somalia being overcrowded with cars. This also helps in reducing the carbon footprint and a better air quality. I truly hope that Mogadishu could be the best city to ride a bike in all of Africa. Such as Montreal being the best city to ride a bike in North America or Copenhagen/Amsterdam the greatest cities to ride a bike in Europe. Planting of trees Human beings are prone to love being in nature and it is our 'natural' habitat. This is why people in urbanized country need tobe reminded that nature is near. Planting of trees all over the city is a must. And this helps with a better air quality and more oxygen. Zoning Zoning is handy for structuring the city. Such as to decide where the international centre is, and after how many 100 meters there has to be a pharmacy or supermarket etc. This is also important for housing and that it should be forbidden to build a house at certain areas. Wide pavement and benches. Boulevards are very typical for Mogadishu. This should be promoted more and built in every city of Somalia. I especially love the boulevards in Paris, France. This is good for enjoying the city life and a feeling of a less busy city. Benches should be all over the city. And pavements should be wide. Mogadishu in my opinion should be a 'pedestrian and bike friendly city'. Most cities in Africa are extremely overcrowded and people walk over the roads. Chaos seems to rule. This should not be the case for Mogadishu. It has the potential to be a great city. Aurotropolis New cities are built around and not too far from airports. A city that was recently built is Songdo, South Korea. While I was studying in South Korea I have also seen many interesting things that make the city of Seoul run fast. For instance Seoul focussesmore on fast transit through a clean and efficient subway system and one card for all use of transport ( taxi / metro / bus andyou can even use that card in supermarkets) But this is only for the far future of Somalia. Mogadishu could make use of it's great location in the world. It also has the potential to be a great convention city of East Africa for business leisure. What do you think about urban planning in Somali and what are your ideas? Let's talk about this. All I know is that planning should be big and sustainable. Watch these videos to see how new competitive cities are being built. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
