China’s Pan-Pearl River Delta

Cities and regions in Asia are facing problems that cannot be adequately managed by traditional urban planning. Competition and local protectionism have often hindered infrastructural development and regional integration. In southern China, an area embracing one-fifth of China and one-third of its population, the economies and societies of nine provinces, together with Hong Kong and Macao, face many barriers to regional collaboration. Fiscal regulatory conflicts, land and housing reform, and bottlenecks in immigration and transport have stymied efforts to develop infrastructure that could spur economic growth and greater prosperity for the entire region.

This book examines regional integration and its barriers in southern China in a comparative framework using perspectives on development and globalization from Europe and North America. With its contributions from leading researchers and practitioners in the field, the book will appeal to students, academics and policymakers interested in urban and regional planning, geography, sociology, public administration and development studies.

Anthony G. O. Yeh is chair professor and head of the Department of Urban Planning and Design, and director of the Centre of Urban Studies and Urban Planning, the University of Hong Kong. Jiang Xu is assistant professor in the Department of Geography and Resource Management, the Chinese University of Hong Kong.

“A timely and much-needed volume on a region of growing importance. Supported by helpful maps and charts, this collection discusses the theory, challenges, and practice of development in an area comprising nearly a third of China’s population. The comparative framework, drawing on experiences from Europe and the United States, is particularly valuable.” —Linda McCarthy, co-author of Urbanization: An Introduction to Urban Geography

“This is a very informative and topical book, which will make a significant contribution to the understanding of China’s regional development.” —Fulong Wu, Cardiff University