The document outlines many roles of urban and regional planners, including: 1) Meeting social and economic objectives through well-balanced development, improving quality of life, responsible resource use, and rational land use. 2) Advocating for social justice and representing disadvantaged groups. 3) Communicating and educating the public, as well as learning from communities. 4) Managing and implementing projects, evaluating programs, and strengthening the project cycle.

1. GREAT ZIMBABWE UNIVERSITY
JULIUS NYERERE SCHOOL OF SOCIAL SCIENCE
DEPARTMENT OF RURAL AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT
Programme: Bsc Honours Degree in Urban and Regional Planning
Module : Professional Practice (Planning) HRUP411
Year : Part 4.1 (2022)
Lecturer : Dr B. Gweshengwe

2. TOPIC
Economic and
Social roles of a
planner

3. INTRODUCTION
Planning is a multidisciplinary profession. As such the roles of a
planner are many and varied.
This multidisciplinary nature of planning is important as a planner is
involved in dealing with multi-sectoral matters of social and
economic development.

4. MEETING SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC
OBJECTIVES
Planning
Well balanced
social and
economic
development
Improvement of
quality of life
Responsible
administration of
resources and
environment
Rational Use of
Land

5. PLANNER AS ADVOCATES OF SOCIAL
JUSTICE (ADVOCACY PLANNING)
Planners must seek to balance considerations of growth and equity
in development at district level or regional level.
They act as defenders of minority groups and defend the interest of
weak and disadvantaged groups so that they may not be overridden
by those of politically and economically powerful and articulate
groups.

6. PLANNER AS ADVOCATES OF SOCIAL
JUSTICE (ADVOCACY PLANNING)
By the nature of his profession the planner should be an agent of
positive change.
As advocate, the planner represents the interests of the people
affected by a proposed development, in their dialogue with
government or private developers.
 In this role the planner ensures that the views and anticipation
expressed by people are incorporated in the plan proposals

7. PLANNER AS A COMMUNICATOR/
THEORETICIAN
The planner should be well vest in planning literature so as to be able to
educate the public in a wide range of issues pertaining to social and
economic development in rural areas.
Planners are expected to be expediters, helping clients to set goals,
develop plans and implement policy in the same way that a psychiatrist
assists his patient to understand himself.(T.I. Gunton 2008)
As a communicator, a professional planner does not profess to be an all-
knowing authority but engages the people in a discussion so as to learn
from them hence he is both a teacher and a student

8. PLANNER AS A PROJECT MANAGER
AND IMPLEMENTER
 The planner is often responsible for management and
implementation of projects at the district-regional level.
 Monitor projects and propose measures for solving
problems that may be encountered in project execution.
 Planners are required to strengthen the project cycle by
advising on improved methods of project design,
management and implementation

9. PLANNER AS PROJECT AND
PROGRAMMES EVALUATOR
 for effective evaluation planners are required to have sound
knowledge of the key indicators of performance and methodology of
how and when to apply them.
Hence the planner should be comfortable in the use of various social
methods and techniques.
The aforementioned methods and techniques should also cover the
systematic promotion of community participation.

10. TOWN PLANNERS AS SOCIAL
REFORMERS
Planners must be social reformers committed to fundamental social
change involving redistribution of power and wealth and the rejection
of self-serving technology and complexity that gives technocrats
power-based on their superior knowledge.
Planners engaged in social reform must create more decentralized
and more self-sufficient social units based on worker ownership,
community co-operatives and communes where professional
planners are ultimately eliminated.

11. TOWN PLANNERS FACILITATORS
 A town planner assumes the role of the consultant and
coordinator when dealing with district, area or sub-sector goals
strategies.
He/she is expected to prepare and interpret development
planning guidelines through the use of various planning
methods and techniques.
He/she should think in strategic terms and adapt guidelines to
actual field sitauations.

12. PREPARING URBAN RENEWAL PROGRAMMES,
REGENERATION AND UPGRADING PLANS.
Planners prepare urban renewal programmes and policies to
prevent the emergence of slums and urban sprawl.
aim is to improve the built and social environment to help
people live in the kind of places that they want and can afford to
live in.
Britain, Turkey and USA are some countries that have
implemented renewal, regeneration and upgrading projects

13. PLANNERS AS INNOVATORS
Top-down planning is well established and hence well known to
planners.
As innovators, the planner would usually be required to advise on
aspects of national and nationally determined policies need
modification at district and regional level as well as to advise kinds
of development policies required to maximize impacts at the grass
roots level.

14. PLANNERS AS INNOVATORS
As a facilitator, the planner should initiate land development projects
by making public and relevant departments/organisations aware of the
purpose of the planning activity and practice.
a good planning facilitator manages and leads the neighborhood or
professional meetings, ensuring that the planning process and its
consecutive parts accomplishes commoners and individual stakeholders
goals.

15. PLANNERS AS MOBILISERS OF
RESOURCES
The planner is a bridge between resources and rural/urban
institutions and non-governmental organizations.
As a mobiliser of resources, the planner has an important role
to play in promoting and organizing self help systems as
important complement to government financed development
efforts.

16. PLANNER AS TECHNOCRAT AND INFORMATION
PROVIDER
 data and information provision is one of the most traditional and
common roles of physical planners world wide.
This role has been improved recently by advancements in IT in
general, and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) in particular
 Processing and provision of spatial and environmental data for
decision makers is fruitful when it leads to sustainable development
practices

17. PLANNER AS REGULATOR AND DEVELOPMENT
CONTROL COORDINATOR
 Planning and building permits
Building standards

18. PLANNER AS NEGOTIATOR
AND MEDIATOR
• As a negotiator, the planner is expected to be involved in conflicts resolutions
between disputed or parties with different goals and interests, usually land
developers on one side,
• and community representatives and government officials on the other.
• If a planner represents government and community his or her obligation is to
serve the public interest
• This also includes protection and conservation of the environment in line with
principles of sustainable development.

19. PLANNER AS POLITICAL ADVISOR
Politics in planning is becoming more and more important due to the increased
sensitivity of democratic processes and its outcomes.
In most of the countries prominent ministers of planning, housing and
environment do not necessarily posses a planning or similar background.
In a such situation their ability to handle peculiar land development and
environmental issues can trigger animosity amongst the public, land owners and
their opposition competitors.
 wise politi_x0002_cians tasked with “land development” and planning cases
should always listen to the voices of planners,

20. PLANNER AS DESIGNING VISIONARY
Urban planning has its roots in design tradition and city beautification.
A member shall be remunerated for his planning services solely by Professional
fees paid by clients and/or by salary paid by his employer.
Urban design as a bridge between architecture and urban planning can always
help to improve and polish city image.
City image carrousel is a natural part of an urbanite whose life depends on the
urban sense of place.

21. PLANNER AS DESIGNING VISIONARY
A planner as designer of such imagery should always contribute to city visioning
and development of its long term character.
the planner’s designing role is to fill the city with space, scale, colour, texture
and furnishings.
these “contributory features” can help cities carry a sense of place, history and
spirit of its developers.

22. PLANNER AS AN ADVISOR ON NATIONAL
AND SECTORAL POLICIES
The planner should be able to advise the public at district or provincial
level on sectoral rural and urban development, such as agricultural
policy, livestock policy, health policy, housing policy etc.
The planner should therefore be in possession of , and familiar with,
respective original policy documents.

23. CONCLUSION