Making Megacities in Asia (eBook)

This book analyses and compares the development paths of five major cities in East and Southeast Asia since the early 1960s, including Ho Chi Minh City, Jakarta, Manila, Seoul, and Shanghai. In examining these five cases through a carefully crafted conceptual framework, the author excavates an understanding of the dynamics that have enabled Seoul and Shanghai to become highly competitive as major engines of economic growth, while simultaneously accounting for why the other three cities have faced numerous problems in terms of meeting their development goals. Presenting both quantitative and qualitative data to trace the course of changes between 1960 and 2015, the case studies curate six possible explanations for the different cities' developmental trajectories. The book considers the national development strategy matters to the development of cities and positions the share of budget revenue retained for cities' expenditure as critical. The author demonstrates that consistently pursuing long-term strategies is important, and that public entrepreneurship with powerful supporting coalitions is vital. The book illustrates how master plans have played limited roles in the building of cities, and that fragmented governments are often at the root of the problems facing a city's development. This book will be highly relevant to researchers in international and Asian urban development.

Dr. Du T. Huynh is a senior lecturer at the Fulbright School of Public Policy and Management where he has taught since 2003. His teaching and research interests include urban economics, regional development, infrastructure development, and finance and banking. He worked at the Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam from 1996 until 2005. He frequently participates in policy dialogue, and his research papers have appeared in a variety of prestigious international journals. Dr Du received an MPA from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government in 2010, and a Doctor of Design Degree from Harvard Graduate School of Design in 2013.  

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This book analyses and compares the development paths of five major cities in East and Southeast Asia since the early 1960s, including Ho Chi Minh City, Jakarta, Manila, Seoul, and Shanghai. In examining these five cases through a carefully crafted conceptual framework, the author excavates an understanding of the dynamics that have enabled Seoul and Shanghai to become highly competitive as major engines of economic growth, while simultaneously accounting for why the other three cities have faced numerous problems in terms of meeting their development goals. Presenting both quantitative and qualitative data to trace the course of changes between 1960 and 2015, the case studies curate six possible explanations for the different cities' developmental trajectories. The book considers the national development strategy matters to the development of cities and positions the share of budget revenue retained for cities' expenditure as critical. The author demonstrates that consistently pursuing long-term strategies is important, and that public entrepreneurship with powerful supporting coalitions is vital. The book illustrates how master plans have played limited roles in the building of cities, and that fragmented governments are often at the root of the problems facing a city's development. This book will be highly relevant to researchers in international and Asian urban development.