Page 81 - Shelter, October 2024

National Urban Learning Programme:

The National Urban Learning Platform (NULP) was launched on June 25, 2020 by the Ministry
of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) in collaboration with the National Institute of
Urban Affairs (NIUA).The NULP aims to empower India’s urban functionaries, administrators,
elected representatives, civil society, industry actors and other ecosystem players to build smart,
inclusive, sustainable and resilient cities.

This program encompasses key aspects of a capacity building and leadership development
initiative in the city ecosystem at this scale. The primary underlying approach for the program
was co-creation through participation from cities and identification of areas where skill building
is required. The program adopted a participatory approach to foster a sense of ownership
and contribution among city officials towards the development of their respective cities. It
aimed to create opportunities for public and peer recognition while empowering officials for
leadership development across various roles. It assessed the readiness of participating cities to
tailor onboarding plans effectively. A governance structure was established to align with the
city’s development goals, and high-quality urban resources were sourced through strategic
partnerships. The platform was continuously enhanced to meet evolving user needs, and key
performance indicators were tracked to support data-driven decision-making. Additionally, the
program drove participation and adoption among learners through ongoing content curation,
management, engagement, and knowledge exchange.

The National Urban Learning Platform (NULP) operates by enrolling a diverse array of training
institutions, schools, civil society organizations, and other knowledge creators to ensure a
broad spectrum of content is accessible. It fosters partnerships between cities, facilitating the
exchange of knowledge and best practices among them. NULP supports responsive, data-
driven governance by working closely with city stakeholders to align and scale their programs
effectively. Additionally, it collaborates with the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs
(MoHUA) missions and integrates with existing capacity-building ecosystems to ensure that
the content meets the practical needs of various missions. To evaluate the effectiveness of its
offerings, NULP provides telemetry frameworks, assessment mechanisms, and tools to measure
content usage, engagement, and completion levels.

The National Urban Learning Programme (NULP) has made significant strides by selecting 19
cities reflecting a commitment to urban innovation and collaboration for the programme. Two
Cities have been designated as pilot cities for new initiatives, with active support from the UK
government’s Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO). The Ministry of Housing
and Urban Affairs has a target of reaching one lakh users with 75 courses across 15 domains by
end of 24.

October, 2024, Volume 25. No.1 - SHELTER 79