Developing A Sustainable Urban Planning Index: A Multi-Criteria Decision-Making Framework for Master Plan Evaluation in Developing Countries

Urban sustainability frameworks are increasingly being localized to reflect area-specific conditions, yet existing assessment tools remain inconsistent, relying on either conceptual models or physical evaluations that demand extensive datasets. This poses challenges, particularly in data-limited settings such as developing countries, where structured sustainability evaluations are lacking. A key gap exists in assessing and ranking development plans, including master plans and spatial strategies, due to the absence of a standardized ranking mechanism for sustainability indicators. “This study introduces the Sustainable Urban Planning Index (SUPI), a structured multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) framework designed for prioritizing sustainability indicators through expert-driven validation and statistical ranking. Tailored for developing countries, SUPI integrates literature review, expert consultations, and quantitative ranking techniques. Two datasets were analyzed: (1) a broad assessment of 30 sustainability indicators evaluated by 64 experts using Relative Importance Index (RII), Fractional Ranking, and Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP); and (2) a sector-specific weighting analysis conducted by 20 urban planning professionals employing AHP-based pairwise comparisons. These datasets were synthesized hierarchically through a structured normalization process, ensuring the convergence of sectoral priorities with individual indicator rankings. The final model integrates these rankings through normalized priority vectors, enhancing consistency and applicability in sustainable urban planning assessments. Findings reveal that land use efficiency, environmental resilience, and governance effectiveness are the most influential sustainability factors, whereas traditional indicators such as population density and zoning regulations exhibit weaker correlations with sustainability performance. The final SUPI model offers policymakers a quantifiable, adaptable evaluation framework for urban sustainability assessment. Future research will focus on real-world validation, refining predictive capabilities, and integrating geospatial analysis and real-time monitoring tools to enhance applicability in data-limited environments, making SUPI a practical decision-support tool for sustainable urban development.