Unpacking market-oriented land governance and its performance differences: Empirical evidence from urban land redevelopment in contemporary China

Abstract

The existing literature has depicted market-oriented land governance by comparing it with other types of governance, such as government-led or state-intervention modes. However, unanswered questions remain. What are the nuances of market-oriented land governance in terms of institutional components and performance? Furthermore, how do context-specific conditions, including the versatile roles of the government, contribute to divergences in market-oriented land governance? To investigate these questions, a comparative analysis of two typical cases of urban land redevelopment (ULR) in China was performed based on a theoretical framework consisting of contextual factors, institutional components, and performance. The results show the following: 1) market-oriented governance of ULR is composed of price mechanisms with divergent competition and cooperation mechanisms induced by various biophysical conditions, actor characteristics, and transaction properties; 2) nuanced market-oriented land governance leads to ULR performance that differs in physical outcomes, distribution effects, and process efficiency; and 3) the local government plays an overarching role in fostering and sustaining market-oriented ULR. This paper sheds light on the emergence of different market-oriented land governance practices and the indispensable role of the local government using empirical evidence from China that is distinct from that found for the Western context.