This report recommends that China curb rapid urban sprawl by reforming land requisition, give migrants urban residency and equal access to basic public services, and reform local finances by finding stable revenues and by allowing local governments to borrow directly within strict central rules.
As China’s people are increasingly concentrated in cities, with 200 million more urban dwellers than a decade ago, the government needs to strengthen the enforcement of environmental legislation and reduce the number of pollution-related health problems, according to the joint report by the World Bank and the Development Research Center of China’s State Council.
The report was prepared over the last 14 months and the interim reports were shared on a continuous basis with China’s top policymakers as input to the government’s policy discussions on urbanization, providing an important basis for the formulation of policies on China’s new model of urbanization.
The report includes six priority areas for a new model of urbanization:
- Reforming land management and institutions.
- Reforming the hukou household-registration system to provide equal access to quality services for all citizens and create a more mobile and versatile labor force.
- Placing urban finances on a more sustainable footing, while creating financial discipline for local governments.
- Reforming urban planning and design.
- Managing environmental pressures.
- Improving local governance.
