Shareholding Land Readjustment Led by Local Government During Peri-Urbanization: The Case of Zhaoqing, China

Abstract

This paper focuses on a new model of land readjustment integrated with shareholding in Zhaoqing, China. It determines whether this innovation reduces transaction costs throughout the land development process. To cope with the uncertainty during rapid urbanization in peripheral areas, shareholding land readjustment provides opportunities for the original landowners to share the long-term sustainable land value increment. This is accomplished through a shareholding platform built by local government and a closely associated state-owned enterprise, with a guarantee of short-term fixed compensation. Shareholding land readjustment holds great promise in connecting plan implementation with land property exchange issues in the Global South.

Keywords:

• Land readjustment
• shareholding
• transaction costs
• process-dependence
• China

Disclosure Statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1 All dollar amounts are in U.S. dollars converted from Chinese yuan at a rate of 7.13 yuan to the dollar, the prevailing rate on 16 June 2023.

2 The estimated lump-sum compensation for RLCD and shareholding land readjustment both include (1) compensation for agricultural land (and improvements thereto), (2) compensation for retained land, (3) social insurance (one-time payment for 15 years). The calculations standards of three parts are followed. First, the compensation for agricultural land is the same for RLCD as it is for shareholding land readjustment, about $43.10 million. Based on the contract between the village land cooperative and the new ZNDLC, the shareholding land readjustment was confined to 318 ha of agricultural land and the estimate doesn’t include compensation for rural construction land). In addition, the compensation for cultivated land is $9.03/m² on the contract. It increased 1.5 times according to our estimate to include compensation for the improvements and standing crops.

Additional information

Funding

This work was funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China [41971205] and the Social Laboratory of Urban Spatial Governance and Policy Simulation at Peking University Shenzhen Graduate School, Shenzhen Humanities & Social Sciences Key Research Bases in China.

Notes on contributors

Jun Chu

Jun Chu is a PhD Candidate at the School of Urban Planning and Design, Peking University Shenzhen Graduate School. His research interests focus on urban planning, and urbanization.

De Tong

De Tong is an Associate Professor at the School of Urban Planning and Design, Peking University Shenzhen Graduate School. She also serves as the direct of the Social Laboratory of Urban Spatial Governance and Policy Simulation, Peking University Shenzhen Graduate School. Her research interests include housing studies, urban regeneration, and land use policy and governance.

Yu-Hung Hong

Yu-Hung Hong is a researcher at Social Laboratory of Urban Spatial Governance and Policy Simulation, Peking University Shenzhen Graduate School. He was a lecturer of Urban Planning and Finance at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Visiting Fellow at the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy. His research interests focus on land use policy and public finance.

Ian MacLachlan

Ian MacLachlan is a Professor at the School of Urban Planning and Design, Peking University Shenzhen Graduate School. His current research focuses on housing development for rural migrants and talent workers, supertall buildings, and informal urban agriculture in China.

Xiangxiang Pan

Xiangxiang Pan is a PhD Candidate at the School of Urban Planning and Design, Peking University Shenzhen Graduate School. His research interests focus on urban planning and land use policy.