Advancing Citizen Engagement and Institutional Collaboration in Urban Development
 

Urban Planning Directorate, Duhok, May 20, 2025, University Press Office (UNPO) | As part of an ongoing academic collaboration between the University of Duhok and TU Dortmund University, a 3-day capacity-building workshop on Participatory Planning and Development was successfully held from April 28–30, 2025 in the Urban Planning Directorate in Duhok Governorate.

The initiative is part of a DAAD-supported project aimed at promoting inclusive planning practices across the Kurdistan Region by engaging both governmental directorates and non-governmental organizations in the development process.

👥 Workshop Hosts and Leadership
The workshop was organized under the supervision of Dr. Basheer Ahmed Mohammed Saeed, Head of the Department of Spatial Planning at UOD, and Dr. Johannes Lückenkötter, Project Coordinator from TU Dortmund University. Valuable support was also provided by Dr. Mohammed Alaulddin Aqiqi, Dr. Aihan Jamal Taha, Mr. Saman Fakhradin Abdulkareem, Mr. Baravan Faisal Abduljabbar, Mr. Aland Kamal Othman, and Ms. Hozan Fawzi Mohammed Saleem.

📍 Location and Attendance
Held at the Directorate of Urban Planning in Duhok Governorate, the workshop brought together directors, planners, engineers, and specialists from a range of key government directorates, including:

• Directorate of Urban Planning in Duhok Governorate
• Municipality of Duhok
• Duhok Governorate
• General Directorate of Duhok Municipalities
• Directorate of Antiquities
• General Directorate of Urban Planning – Erbil
   

Notable attendees included Dr. Dilshad Abduljabbar Haleem, Vice President for Administration and Financial Affairs at UOD, and Dr. Layla Mohamed Raswol, Dean of the College of City and Regional Planning.

🧩 Interactive Sessions on Participatory Planning and Development
The workshop covered a wide range of interactive training sessions designed to enhance institutional capacity for inclusive urban planning. Highlights included:

• Stakeholder Identification and Power-Interest Analysis
• Understanding Stakeholder Attitudes, Fears, and Expected Benefits
• Assessing Resource Contributions and Participation Functions
• Mapping Participation Levels Across Planning Stages
• Thematic Synthesis for Participatory Project Implementation
   

🛠️ Strategic Objectives and Long-Term Vision
This workshop is part of a broader effort to embed participatory approaches in the regional development framework. Through this project, UOD and TU Dortmund aim to:

• Institutionalize stakeholder engagement in planning processes
• Foster cross-sectoral collaboration between academia, government, and civil society
• Promote locally grounded, citizen-responsive planning models
• Establish an official active Center for Participatory Planning and Development in UOD
   

📅 What’s Next
More workshops and collaborative events are scheduled through the remainder of 2025, with the project concluding at the end of the year. The partnership aims to produce lasting institutional change through knowledge-sharing and co-designed planning strategies, and to establish an official Center for Participatory Planning and Development in UOD.

📌 Explore UOD’s urban research vision and upcoming infrastructure initiatives: Visit UOD Strategic Plan 2023–2038

📸 CLICK TO VIEW THE MEDIA COVERAGE FOR THIS EVENT
 

 📢 University Press Office – May 20, 2025
📝 Reported by: Fatima Mahmood Ali, Aland Kamal Othman
📸 Photography by: Aland Kamal Othman, Hozan Fawzi Mohammed Saleem

🔍 SEO Meta Keywords:

• Participatory Planning 
• Public Participation
• TU Dortmund 
• DAAD Projects in Iraq
• Sustainable Development Kurdistan Region
• Stakeholder Engagement