Author Description

This book offers a systematic and comparative study on urbanization and urban development in China and India. Contributed by a team of top experts from China and India, it contains original research papers that have not been published. The study aims at addressing two most fundamental issues of urbanization: why and where to urbanize. The first issue relates to the speed and scale of urbanization and the second issue relates to urban systems or spatial distribution of urbanites in different-sized cities. To answer these two questions, the book examines various drivers and compares the benefits and costs of urbanization from different perspectives, paying particular attention to the roles of markets, government and the society. This book presents evidence-based policy suggestions regarding labor market, land and housing market, FDI and capital market, education, environment, poverty and inequality, etc. The main conclusion from this study is: Asian countries like China and India will experience an urbanization path led by mega-cities. What the government can do is to improve liveability within cities and equalize life quality across cities. Given the similarities and differences of these two giants, it is anticipated that findings, conclusions and implications from this comparative analysis will be useful to other governments, institutions as well as researchers in Asia and beyond.