Planning education for Iraq

Iraq as a post-war country is undergoing a complex transformation process. The impositions challenge not only political stakeholders but society in general. In line with implications on the economic system, governmental structures, demography, cultural habits, natural resources and environment, spatial patterns are changing enormously. Iraqi government and especially its planning authorities are confronted with big challenges as these processes require new competences and enlarged capacity that have not been necessary to this extend in the past. The publication on hand is the product of the DAAD funded cooperation project “pliq” (planning education for Iraq). The pliq project is developed from a long-standing co-operation between the Faculty of Spatial Planning, TU Dortmund University and Iraqi universities in Dohuk, Mosul, Diyala, Baghdad, Sulaimania and Erbil. The publication provides a platform for exchange between planners from Germany and from Iraq, from academia and practice, thus encouraging and strengthening dialogue concerning the state of the art in the field of planning. By comparing planning philosophies and exploring new approaches and best practices in planning education and planning practice in the respective countries, it seeks to sharpen the profile of spatial planning as a discipline with an important development task.