Baghdad Comprehensive City Development Plan 2030

The Baghdad Comprehensive City Development Plan 2030 is the new master plan for the capital city in the context of post-war Iraq¹. The plan will guide urban development in Baghdad up to the year 2030 in the domains of land use, transportation, and environment².

This new City Development Plan for Baghdad seeks to integrate the economic, social, and environmental aspects of planning, ensuring it addresses current urban problems. It expands the scope of the planning process beyond a focus on just the built form, and seeks to develop a comprehensive plan, responsive to all tangible and intangible aspects of the city as a whole³. It consists of several components, such as relocation of industrial areas from the center of the city to the outskirts, addressing issues of housing, and providing quality mass transportation systems⁴.

It is developed in line with the following key points of the vision of the Mayoralty of Baghdad:

• Supporting the growth of Baghdad and recognizing it as the international capital involves comprehensive urban planning updates, avoiding reliance on traditional concepts. It requires fostering economic diversity and securing interactive partnerships between the public and private sectors.
• Preserving the city’s identity, safeguarding heritage and touristic structures, and conserving the natural environment, protecting it from urban expansion and pollution.
• Improving housing and addressing the current shortfall, as well as future needs⁵.

Covering an area of 1,267 square kilometers⁶, the plan comprises of urban planning policies for multiple sectors such as housing, transportation including the Baghdad Elevated Metro (BET), and public and green spaces^{7 8}. The primary strategic interventions of the plan include⁹: the enhancement of the connectivity between urban centers and suburbs, the development of ring roads and mass Transportation systems, as well as bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure. The master plan also proposes the activation of river transportation plan. Additionally, the plan includes the expansion of Baghdad international airport. Other strategic interventions also seek greater efficiency in city center mobility systems through modalities such as park-and-ride and express transit stations¹⁰.

The master plan preparation was carried out over the following four key phases¹¹:

• Gathering and Analyzing Data, Present Condition and Trends Assessment (Background Analysis and Vision Statement).
• Development Plan Alternatives and Outline Strategies.
• Preparing the Comprehensive Development Plan and Detailed Action Plans (and identifying the necessary steps to achieve this).
• Finalizing the comprehensive development plan and preparing for implementation.

The project was initiated by the mayoralty of Baghdad. As for the master plan, it was designed by Khatib & Alami Consolidated Engineering, Beirut, and funded by the World Bank and the mayoralty of Baghdad¹². The master plan was approved by the Iraqi authorities in 2022 ¹³, and the main projects of the master plan are under implementation.