Analyzing the encroachment process of informal settlements in the periurban of Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

The thesis research analyses the encroachment process of informal settlements in the periurban of Ho Chi Minh City. After Vietnam's renovation in 1986 with an increasingly open economy to the rest of the world, there are remarkable changes in Ho Chi Minh, the biggest city of Vietnam. As a certain result of the city's growth, the periurban is affected strongly, including the expansion of informal settlements. There are some studies working on the socio-economic changes of the periurban in Ho Chi Minh City, but not focusing on the phenomenon of informal settlements in these areas. Therefore the phenomenon is still unclear in Ho Chi Minh City, especially in the context of Vietnam, a communist country where land commonly belongs to all national residents. The research aims to understand the phenomenon deeply by exploring its mechanism with the different actors involved and their preferences, as well as the effects of public policies and implementation on the process. The phenomenon is also put in international context of developing world, in order to assess the similar and specific issues in Ho Chi Minh City. The two community units in the city periurban were studied to have the clear picture illustrating the whole encroachment process of informal settlements taking place from the late 1990s up to now, the period of the strong expansion of informal settlements in the city periurban, explaining why they could build their own communities without laws and regulations. The research; moreover, discovers intervention of two district governments, which are now responsible for urban management, as the result of decentralization process in Vietnam. The similarities and differences in their policies on the informal settlements in their areas are also explored. From the results of the research, recommendations to the government in dealing with existing and future informal settlements as well as land management in the city periurban are given. In addition, by understanding the housing demand of the residents in the periurban areas the research recommends important considerations for formal housing markets and low cost housing programs in Ho Chi Minh City nowadays. Time for the research is limited, however the researcher hope that the results will contribute to useful knowledge on Ho Chi Minh City, and further research on the periurban of Ho Chi Minh City as well as housing programs for groups of residents living in informal settlements nowadays.