Architects body wants flood-prone areas turned into development sites

ANNE ROBI

Architects and Quantity Surveyors Registration Board (AQRB) Registrar Architect Jehad Abdallah.

Architects and Quantity Surveyors Registration Board (AQRB) Registrar Architect Jehad Abdallah.

ARCHITECTS and Quantity Surveyors Registration Board (AQRB) has asked the government to adopt and implement a site plan aiming at transforming flood-prone urban areas into potential development sites.

The Board’s Registrar Architect Jehad Abdallah Jehad, said in Dar es Salaam over the weekend during a public lecture that the project has been arrived through a design research that foresees various ways on how to deal with urban watershed system instead of just creating impractical plans that end up wasting resources.

“The project helps in facilitating creation and implementation of urbanisation guides and development conditions in form of alternative strategies that serve as the watershed development that sustainable urbanize the urban watershed systems in the city,” he said.

He said if adapted and implemented the project would help the government do away with non-enforceable laws and unrealistic development conditions and regulations that restricts encroachment.

He noted that the city’s master plan has since failed to guide urbanisations that protect the urban watersheds systems though they are supported with various laws and regulations that restrict habitation, urbanisation and development in the hazardous areas that include watersheds and other low-lying areas in the city,” he noted.

Despite several initiatives such as physical and legal restrictions, demolition and resettlement schemes aimed at protecting urban watersheds, they have yielded negative results.

“We have got the long-term solution over the flood hazardous areas through the plan … the way forward is for the government and stakeholders to adopt and implement it for the good of the people and the nation at large,” he said.

The strategic project illustrates several possibilities to deal with flooding and urbanization in the Msimbazi watershed systems in the city.

According to the expert, the overall management in the Msimbazi watershed system is required to control flooding for harmonious living above high flooding water mark on the edges of the watershed in order for the urbanisation and flood to co-exist within Msimbazi watershed system.

An Architect from Ardhi University Mr Jaffar Jongo said researches indicate that watersheds areas such as Msimbazi are not fit for human settlement unless the government adopts the plan for long-term solution.

“We urge the government to adopt the plan that would help it (government) set up buildings at the areas (watersheds systems) that would maintain the residents,” he said.