Professor Wu covered the shift of the theoretical basis of the urban governance in the Western societies from urban managerialism to urban entrepreneurialism, shared his insights into China’s serial projects of “renovating old towns, old factories and old villages”, construction projects of new cities and new districts, rural development projects, and the issue of informal housing, and discussed how to coordinate the roles of planning and market in urban governance to achieve effective results.
Professor Wu said adopting the business governance method, namely introducing market tools in urban governance, would improve governance efficiency through optimum allocation of capital. However, that only happened in theory, as urban governance in practice was more than capital seeking profits. Instead, it was about such actors as states, market and society testing each other’s strength. The targets set by the planning should be firstly considered when decisions about governance methods had to be made, whether in the serial project of “renovating old towns, old factories and old villages”, or the construction project of new cities and new districts. It was a common practice to transfer some benefits or rights in the process, as it may guarantee renovation or construction progress. In some cases, as different actors testing each other’s strength, the issue of informal housing was intensified.
Professor Wu therefore suggested that cities in China should not copy the Western theories of urban managerialism and urban entrepreneurialism indiscriminately. Now more market organizations and market tools have been introduced into China’s urban governance. They facilitate urban construction and renovation projects on the one hand; on the other hand, they are not the remedies for all difficulties that arise along the way. This is where planning comes into use. Besides coordinating public interests, it could guarantee development and specify strategies. China therefore follows a pattern of adopting market for its practical uses while keeping planning as the core in urban governance.
In the end, Professor Wu spent nearly 30 minutes on discussing with attendees on the relevance of western theories to China’s academia, how China may develop its own urban governance theories and patterns, how to understand the role of planning in China’s urban governance, and how to coordinate the roles of planning and market so as to create an effective benefit-sharing mechanism.
About the Guest Lecturer
Wu Fulong is an academician of the British Academy, and Bartlett Professor of Planning at University College London. His research interests include urban development in China and its social and sustainable challenges. His works have been funded by ESRC/D-FID, the British Academy, Leverhulme, Trust Funds, Nuffield Foundation, International Development Association and UCRN, etc. He has published ten books including Planning for Growth: Urban and Regional Planning in China (2015), and more than 110 research papers in major international journals.
Contributed by Mao Xiyan
