The Future of Kabul City: An international conference to address reconstruction of a ravaged city.

As Kabul is emerging from the ashes of war and peace is coming back to the city, the capital is facing an enormous challenge for reconstruction. Rebuilding is key to peace-building and the reconstruction of a civil urban society.

In the last twenty years Kabul has been devastated by the calamities of a blind and callous war.

In addition, during this period the population of the city has tripled from 750,000 to over two millions. Bombed out neighborhoods, sprawling squatter settlements, influx of homeless refugees in search of shelter, air pollution and environmental degradation describe the current scene in the city.

And yet the vitality of the people who have come together out of choice or without choice in this accidental metropolis is everywhere. Ideas on how to deal with the challenges of the city has been wide and far apart from a sense of helplessness that nothing can be done to bold proclamation that the city be moved to a fresh site.

This is the first international conference to be held on-site in Kabul that will address the future of this capital city and the urban planning issues it will be facing. It invites architects, engineers, urban planners, social scientists and development economists to come to Kabul and present their analyses, thoughts and recommendations for tackling its problems and shaping its future.

The conference will be focussed around seven themes that the participants are requested to concentrate their papers and presentations on.

Themes of the Conference

1.National Urban Growth: This theme will deal with the role of secondary cities, their problems and prospects, and the influences these cities will have on the growth of the capital city, Kabul. Presentations will focus on Kunduz, Mazar-e Sharief, Herat, Kandahar and Jelalabad,and the role these major cities play in shaping the national urban scene and the ways they can relief pressure on the Capital.

2. Heritage of Kabul: This theme will explore the history of Kabul and its cultural heritage. Presentations should deal with cultural identity of Kabul and the ways this identity can be preserved or redefined after the years of war and destruction. Specific papers may deal with preservation of particular monuments or the old town as a whole.

3. Urban Infrastructure and Services: This theme will deal with the issues of non-existent, inadequate or damaged urban infrastructure in the city: roads, water, power, sanitation, etc. I will also address urban services such as schools, parks/recreation spaces, fire, police and other services the city needs.

4. Urban Housing/Informal Settlements: In an already expanding city beyond control with added backlog of housing created by the war, shortage of housing is a serious problem. This theme will focus on different strategies and approaches dealing with housing at different levels and income groups. A particular focus will be on the city's squatter settlements which forms nearly half of the housing stock of the city. Issues related to housing such as construction technology, land-tenure, financing etc will be under discussion.

5. Institutional and Legal Framework for Urban Planning Process and Management in Kabul: This theme will look into existing and alternative legal and institutional framework appropriate for Kabul.

It should look into the role that the existing organizational structure within the national government and Kabul Municipality plays in managing urban growth.

It will also address legal issues such as zoning ordinance, building codes and their enforcement. Role of the government and the private sector and the partnership they can create in alternative modes of development will be discussed. This theme will also include approaches to the planning process and their application in Kabul, in particular it should address the controversy over the need for master planning.

6. Experiences from Other Contexts: This theme will be dedicated to the sharing of experiences from cities which may have faced similar problems and challenges as Kabul.

They can be in the area of war and disaster reconstruction such as Tokyo, Berlin, Beirut and Mexico City or problems of uncontrolled growth and settlements that the cities in South and Southeast Asia face.

7. Open Theme: Those who will be making important contributions to the conference and yet feel their papers will not fit the themes described above, can submit their papers under this theme. Time/Place/Activities:

The conference will be held in Kabul at Kabul University campus, September 21-25, 2002. There will be pre-conference, during the conference and post-conference activities that participants can attend.

They will include tours of the destroyed areas of the city, historic monuments of the city, tour of the old town of Kabul, tour of squatter settlements and other. These will be organized based on the level of interest.

There will also be exhibits, by participants from abroad, individuals and agencies in Kabul at the site of the conference. Accommodation: Sponsors have committed themselves to provide lodging and food for participant while in Kabul. Participants should seek their own funding for travel to and from Kabul.

Inquiries and Deadlines:Those who are presenting papers, should submit their papers no later than August 31, 2002 to the sources below. Registration and commitment to participation should also be sent no later than August 31, 2002.

Papers & presentation should be either in local languages of Pashtu or Dari or English.

Papers outside Afghanistan should be sent to:
Rafi Samizay,
AIA Professor,
School of Architecture and Construction Management

Washington State University
Pullman, WA. 99164, USA
Phone: 509-335-2496
Fax: 509-335-6132
e-mail: [email protected]

Registration and other inquiries outside Afghanistan to:
Najim Azad,
AIA Azad Architects 280 Clifornia street,
Suite 1, Newton, Mass. 02458,
USA
Tel: 617-558-4144
Fax: 617-558-7575
e-mail: [email protected]

Papers and registration inside Afghanistan should be sent to: Engineer Nasir Saberi Advisor,
Ministry of Town Planning and Housing Kabul,
Afghanistan
e-mail: [email protected]

Note: Once papers and commitment to registration is received, a detailed schedule for the conference will be received. In the interest of time, papers and inquiries should be sent electronically.