RE-FRAMING APPROACHES TO CONCEPTUALISING

URBAN GOVERNANCE IN MELANESIA: INSIGHTS FROM

JAYAPURA AND PORT MORESBY

Urban and Regional Planning Program

Faculty of Architecture, Design and Planning

University of Sydney

2nd Planocosmo Conference

Bandung, 21 October 2013

Assoc Prof PAUL JONES

PhD Student NINIK SUHARTINI

Around 25-35% of world’s urban population is estimated

as excluded from formal city planning processes

Understanding what produces these social and

physical outcomes = more effective ‘planning’

If towns, cities and their communities are not part

of the formal planning system, then how do they

meet their ‘public’ needs?? - land, housing, water,

sanitation, health, education, urban security, etc

URBAN GOVERNANCE –

A CONTESTED CONCEPT

Genesis in “western planning systems” - colonial legacy in many countries

Formal planning regulations and policies reflect middle class and elite values

Development brings with it “outside” perspectives and values

“Real cities” are built by various types of arrangements and interplay of many stakeholders:

Formal government only one mode of intervention –only part of the “urban experience”

THE REALITY IS PROCESSES OF CITY DEVELOPMENT, PLANNING

AND GOVERNANCE ARE DIFFERENT – BUT NOT SUFFICIENTLY

EXPLORED AND MAINSTREAMED

Formal e.g. Sydney Informal e.g. Jayapura, Port Moresby

In developing countries, but most urban growth is now informal and outside

the boundary of the formal planning systems

MID-SIZED MELANESIAN CITIES

AREA940 KM2;

POP 236,476;

POP GROWTH 4.4%;

MELANESIANS +55%

AREA 240 KM2;

POP 410,000;

POP GROWTH 4%;

MELANESIANS +80%

INDONESIA

SPATIAL DEVELOPMENT:

SOCIO-PHYSICAL CONSTRUCTS

JAYAPURA DETAILS PORT MORESBY

DUTCH-AMERICAN FORMAL PLANNING SYSTEM BRITISH-AUSTRALIAN

3 TIERS OF GOVERNMENT,

SELF-HELP, HYBRID

INFRASTRUCTURE PROVISION LOCAL GOVERNMENT (Note: NCDC

excludes unplanned settlements )

SELF-HELP

+25% UNPLANNED AREA +50%

NATIVE, FORMAL, INFORMAL TYPES OF SETTLEMENTS NATIVE, FORMAL, INFORMAL

STATE, FREEHOLD, COSTUMARY LAND TENURE SYSTEM STATE, CUSTOMARY

URBAN GROWTH EXPRESSED IN SETTLEMENTS-

JAYAPURA

- Initial formal settlements were established by Dutch Government

- Informal settlements fill in the formal structures in city centres and

sprawl in the fringe area

Formal public consultation

Self-helped clean water provision Informal settlement in city centre

PNPM Urban

How Port Moresby is growing?120 plus informal settlements, 45-50% of city population not in formal planning system

URBAN GROWTH EXPRESSED IN SETTLEMENTS-PORT MORESBY

• colonial impacts on

planning

• diversity of

settlement types have

evolved

* Accessing land, water and power –

examples in Eight Mile settlement

* Many settlements based on ethnic

ties – enclaves of kin and ethnic

support

Taurama Valley,

Port Moresby (customary land)

* Level of services and infrastructure

influenced by social organisation and

structure of settlement, ethnic ties

* Strength of leadership, interplay

of kin groups, land tenure type,

kin and clan unity – level of

poverty and hardship

RE-IMAGING HOW URBAN GOVERNANCE PLAYS OUT

IS CENTRAL TO IMPROVED URBAN OUTCOMES

MIX OF PLANNING

SYSTEMS AND PROCESS

CONDUCTED BY THE

INDIVIDUALS AND

GROUPS

• SOCIO-ECONOMIC

GROUPS

• SOCIO-CULTURAL

GROUPS

• GOVERNANCE

• ACCESS TO RESOURCES

FORMAL

REGULATED AND PLANNED

“INFORMAL”

(BUT REGULATED AND

PLANNED)

THE “REAL” DYNAMIC

CITY

RE-IMAGING URBAN GOVERNANCE IS

CENTRAL TO IMPROVED URBAN OUTCOMES

• Understanding modes of urban governance is central to improved public and

private needs = finding right ‘entry points’ for support

•the city represents overlapping systems of governance working together –

people and communities continually adapt, use and take from these systems what

is most relevant to them in terms of land, housing, water supply, power, etc

• each governance system operates via a multitude of socio cultural orders of

values and norms (especially development banks, etc)

• the term ‘informal urbanism’ is an elite term = “looking at others from their own

perspective”: its utility is questioned - negative connotations?

• Kin based governance systems strong in urban governance processes

especially providing basic urban services and infrastructure

HATUR NUHUN

Before

urbanisation….

…… and during

urbanisation !!!!

Paul Jones: paul.r.jones@sydney.edu.au

Ninik Suhartini: nsuh4978@uni.sydney.edu.au