The Nigerian Institute of Town Planners (NITP) has petitioned the National Assembly over a bill currently before the Senate seeking to establish the Chartered Institute of Planning of Nigeria, cautioning that the proposed legislation could create legal conflicts and institutional confusion within the planning profession.
The Nigerian Institute of Town Planners (NITP) has raised concerns over a bill that has passed second reading in the Senate, proposing the establishment of the Chartered Institute of Planning of Nigeria, warning that its provisions conflict with existing laws governing planning practice in the country.
In a petition submitted to the National Assembly, the institute argued that the proposed body is empowered to develop and raise planning standards across all sectors of national life, enhance plan implementation, and maintain a register of fellows, associates, chartered planners and honorary planners.
According to the petition, the bill also seeks to empower the proposed institute to set standards of knowledge, skills and competence for membership, license and register practitioners across various faculties, and establish training institutions for education and professional development.
Other outlined functions include promoting a planning culture at individual, institutional, national and international levels; creating public awareness on the relevance of planning in modern society; encouraging research to improve planning techniques; and facilitating effective resource management to achieve optimal development outcomes.
Confirming the development, NITP President, Dr Ogbonna Chime, said the name, objectives and provisions of the bill are largely in conflict with the Nigerian Institute of Town Planners, a professional body that has existed for decades.
He faulted the sponsor of the bill for what he described as insufficient research, particularly regarding the duplication of mandates already assigned to existing institutions.
Chime noted that about 95 per cent of the objectives contained in the proposed legislation are already covered by existing laws, including the Nigerian Urban and Regional Planning Law of 1992, now Cap 138 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2004, and the Town Planners Registration Council of Nigeria Law of 1988.
While acknowledging that the sponsor of the bill may have acted with good intentions, he warned that its passage could result in institutional overlap, regulatory conflicts and confusion within the planning profession.
He recalled a similar attempt in 2015, when an organisation registered as the Institute of Planning of Nigeria sponsored a bill that also passed second reading in the Senate before public scrutiny exposed its implications.
According to Chime, the organisation was later deregistered by the Corporate Affairs Commission following investigations. He stressed that globally, planning remains synonymous with town planning, citing Ghana’s Institute of Planning and similar professional structures in other countries.
He argued that transparency, accountability and effective resource management would be better achieved through enforcement of existing laws rather than the proliferation of professional institutions.
NITP, RTPI Partner on Urban Planning Challenges
Meanwhile, the Nigerian Institute of Town Planners and the United Kingdom’s Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI) have agreed to strengthen cooperation aimed at addressing urban planning challenges facing cities.
The partnership, formalised through a Memorandum of Understanding signed by RTPI President, Helen Fadipe, and NITP President, Dr Chime, is designed to promote knowledge exchange, professional development and the sharing of global best practices.
Under the agreement, both institutions will encourage mutual visits, joint participation in programmes, co-branding of selected NITP events in Nigeria as RTPI Core Continuing Professional Development activities, and information sharing on professional membership pathways and CPD frameworks.
The MoU also covers collaboration on addressing planning challenges confronting towns and cities, raising awareness of professional development routes, and strengthening continuous learning structures within both organisations.
Both bodies have a history of collaboration through the Commonwealth Association of Planners, and the agreement builds on that longstanding relationship.
Speaking at the signing ceremony, Fadipe highlighted the importance of international collaboration in driving sustainable global development, while Chime said the partnership would expose young planners to global standards, professional excellence and shared knowledge.
