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Chapter 2: Urban Poverty-Related Policy and Promotional Policies for the Informal Economy in Bangkok
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38 Living with Risk 38 Chapter 2 Urban poverty-related policy and promotional policies for the Informal economy in Bangkok This chapter examines Thai policies toward the urban poor, central among them, the development of slum-related policy. In the midst of this policy development, the government created a new set of policies designed to promote the informal economy. As this chapter analyses these two policy developments, it also will consider the relationship and interaction between these two sets of policy and changes in actual circumstances for the urban poor. Thailand’s urban-poor policy initially focused on the slums of Bangkok, and oversaw comprehensive policies. Communities in Bangkok grew dramatically during a period of urban expansion that began in the 1960s, when population soared. Most of this growth manifested in the form of squatter communities, which the government perceived as a problem to solve as part of its national development agenda. However, the focus of policy on these slums expanded beyond physical development to consider the social and economic aspects of poverty as well. In the context of this expanded view of poverty and policy initiative, a theory about the “informal sector” was introduced. Policy-making and execution is a complex process, because policy and the actual circumstances that inspire policy creation and change influence each other mutually and constantly evolve. When actual conditions correspond with the need of residents, policy development may begin. Even then, residents can choose to create their own solution. If they seek external assistance, the government can ignore their requests, respond weakly to them, or identify the policy challenge and engage with the community. This process of mutual interaction progresses in a cyclical fashion, in which various stakeholders assess actual circumstances, Urban Poverty-Related Policy and Promotional Policies 39 respond to them, and reformulate their responses whenever they identify a mismatch between policy responses and conditions on the ground, or detect pertinent environmental changes. Before launching into an empirical analysis of this book’s research sites, then, it is necessary to first outline the history of interaction between conditions on the ground, policy, and theory. Doing so will also bring to light how Thais have perceived the informal economy, and how an issue that policymakers once ignored has now become a goal under the rubric of urban-poverty policy. Changes in the Spatial Arrangement of Slum Communities and the Informal Economy: The Conflict between “Occupation” and “Residence” Bangkok’s Slum Communities Communities represent one of the spatial units in which residents live their lives and carry out individual and household reproductive activities. As such, “community” is also a geographical concept, a local society with physical boundaries that can be recognised by its members. It is important to keep in mind that although community designations in Japan generally correspond to small, official administrative units and neighbourhood associations, in Bangkok, communities are registration-based and are not the smallest official administrative units covering the entire city but, rather, exist as distinct neighbourhoods within the city. In Bangkok, the full-fledged registration of communities began in the 1990s. However, communities, and in particular slum communities, were identified as targets of policy as early as the 1970s. In the 1960s, Bangkok experienced, along with industrialisation, a rapid growth of new slums as the urban population grew, but there was an absolute shortage of affordable housing in the private housing market.1 The majority of 1 According to Sopon (1992), in 1980 only 20% of households in Bangkok had the financial resources to purchase new houses available in the private market. From this it can be seen that the housing offered by developers was targeted only at high-income earners. In 1986, the percentage of households that did not have the ability to purchase low-cost townhouses (175,000 baht per unit) fell slightly to 46%. In 1991, the supply of townhouses had declined. Fifty per cent of households were able to afford the low-cost condominiums that were beginning to be offered. In 1993, reflecting the recession in the real estate market, the housing market for low-income earners was further reduced, with the percentage of households able to purchase such housing declining to 40%. This resulted in the development of the rental market. The increase [204.236.220.47] Project MUSE (2024-03-29 12:23 GMT) 40 Living with Risk rural migrants settled next to railroad tracks, on wetlands next to canals, and on other lands (temple grounds and vacant private land), creating newly burgeoning slum...