Economic Development, Informal Land-Use Practices and Institutional Change in Dongguan, China

Yingmin Huang, Desheng Xue and Gengzhi Huang
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Yingmin Huang: School of Architecture and design, Jiangxi University of Science and Technology, Ganzhou 341000, China
Desheng Xue: School of Geography and Planning, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou 510275, China
Gengzhi Huang: School of Geography and Planning, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou 510275, China

Sustainability, 2021, vol. 13, issue 4, 1-18

Abstract: This paper is engaged with the critical perspective that highlights the role of the state in the production of urban informality by examining the dynamics of informal land-use practices in Dongguan, China since 1978. Based on in-depth interviews and archival analysis, the relationship between informal land development, the state, and land institution change has been revealed. Our findings show that informal land development is practiced by village collectives from below in Dongguan as a response to the absence and limitation of the national land law. The local government handles the informality in a pragmatic way that serves the goal of economic development in different historical conditions by actions of encouraging, tolerating, and authorizing, suggesting that the definition of informality is not a neutral classification. It is argued that while informality represents people’s creativity in dealing with practical problems, when and to what extent it can be tolerated, formalized, and absorbed depends on the intention of the state in a specific historical context.

Keywords: informal land-use practice; institutional innovation; urban informality; state governance; the PRD (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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