A Communique of the Executive Council Retreat of The Association of Town Planning Consultants of Nigeria (ATOPCON) at Goshenville Hotel Limited, Okuta-Elerin Housing Estate off Ilesha Road, Akure

INTRODUCTION

This is the communiqué of the Executive Council Retreat of the Association of Town Planning Consultants of Nigeria held 19th..-20th. January 2016 at Goshenville Hotel Limited Okuta-Elerin Housing Estate off Ilesha road, Akure. The retreat was well attended; papers were presented and deliberated upon and issues that are germane to practice and well being of consultants were also discussed. The communiqué issued at the end of the retreat are encapsulated in the following observations and recommendations;

OBSERVATIONS

1. There is appreciable and positive development and growth in the private sector practice of Town Planning in the country.
2. The lingering lull in the relationship existing between NITP and TOPREC is not in the best interest of the profession
3. The need for Practitioners to embrace business strategies to grow their practice.
4. That there is a need for private sector practitioners to identify with the academia and step up enlightenment of planning practice activities in schools
5. Contrary to varying issues and problems inhibiting private sector professional practice, there is appreciable and positive development and growth of private sector practice in the country.
6. We observe that there is need for private sector Practitioners to explore and strengthen their relationship with the public sector practitioners.

RECOMMENDATIONS

1. Visitation to planning schools to improve our relationship and continuous interaction with the academia including students for continuous synergy and better understanding and corporation between practice and the gown.
2. There should be continuous interaction between the public and private practice practitioners for better quality professional services
3. Consulting town-planning firms are encouraged to use business strategies to grow their practice looking at their presentations, branding, practice evaluation and embrace knowledge acquisition.
4. Political expediency in the practices of urban and regional planning cannot be ruled out, practitioners in private sector are encouraged to be proactive in politics since we cannot divorce politics from planning.
5. Private sector practitioners are encouraged to look inwards for options at diversifying planning practice options for a systematic, logical and rationale approach to business decisions.
6. Consulting firms should be ready to offer consultancy services pro bono especially for the under privileged and the oppressed.
7. Continuous education for the integration of new technologies in improving planning practice in Nigeria.
8. There is need for TOPREC to monitor the practice in all spheres to enforce its laws and regulations. The President ATOPCON thanked the participants for sparring the time to attend the retreat, their useful comments and commitments.

Signed,

Tpl Idris O Salako MNITP, RTP

Vice President, ATOPCON