Urban and Regional Development Policy in East Asia

Urban and Regional Development Policy in East Asia

&nbsp;&nbsp;Rapid economic development imparts a common thread to urban and regional policies in East Asia. Because economic development has taken root at different times, policies differ among countries. Early development encounters shifts from traditional to modern production. Low-skilled wages are kept low by supplies of labor from traditional production. Urban and regional population distribution is subject to great change. Concerns center on infrastructure needs due to urban influx. When lowcost labor supplies run out, wages rise throughout the economy. Infrastructure needs due to rising incomes as well as rising population take on importance. When technology transfer from other nations no longer provides the major impetus to growth, policy needs are shaped increasingly by global changes in a high-tech world.<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;Many countries have regions with persistently lagging per capita incomes due to amenity compensation, cost of living differences, human capital composition, time taken for inter-generational migration, and lags in technology transfer. In western China, labor flows within provinces have been more important to development than inter-provincial migration. Massive rural-urban migration is projected to continue for more than a generation, keeping unskilled wages low throughout China. Growth source analysis for the provinces of China reveals the strong roles of capital, technology and inter-industry shifts in western China’s growth. The west will have to grow even faster than the rapidly growing east to catch up.<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;Concerns in rapidly growing cities throughout East Asia include primal city problems, making cities more competitive, large-scale development projects, infrastructure, environment, amenities, historic preservation, and the smart growth movement. Greater collaboration is needed between economists and urban planners.