The Somali region has been ravaged by civil war and unrest for many years.  The existing urban centres were destroyed and records disappeared. At present, rapid growth is translating into the haphazard development of urban centres.  Some settlements are prone to natural hazards or those caused by humans; most will be confronted with high administrative costs when attempting to provide infrastructure and services to a scattered population.  The weak institutional set-up and poorly equipped municipalities (poor human resources, technical know-how, equipment, and financial resources) hamper orderly development and efficient resource utilization in the urban centres.

Improving planning capacity is therefore very crucial for all urban centres in Somaliland.  The necessary tools toenable this change have to be developed without further delay.  This manual is meant to avail an operational planning tool that responds to the following situational requirements.