Association of African Planning Schools (AAPS)

The Association of African Planning Schools (AAPS) is a voluntary, peer-to-peer network of over 50 urban and regional African institutions that educate and train urban/city and/or regional/rural planners. Established in 1999, AAPS facilitates the exchange of information among African planning schools and links African and international planning schools.

The network seeks to improve the quality and visibility of planning pedagogy, research and practice in Africa besides promoting planning education advocating ethical, sustainable, multicultural, gender-sensitive, and participatory planning practice.

AAPS specifically seeks to promote:

• Curriculum review and revision, to produce planning programmes that are contextually relevant and engaged with the needs of local communities.
• Collaborative and comparative research that emphasises the particular dynamics of local urban contexts.
• Shared comprehensive understanding of the challenges facing planners in Africa.
• Regional collaboration in progressive, pro-poor urban policy and planning responses.
• Resource sharing, capacity building and skills transfer.
• Liaison with professional planning institutes/associations on issues relating to curriculum development.