A Competition for Land

Abstract

Competition for land is a new dimension of vulnerability in informal settlements. With the rapid increase in urban land prices, central and pericentral urban land occupied precariously is increasingly coveted both by investors for prestigious projects, and by the people who occupy them, for upgrading with staying living on site. Phnom Penh is an emblematic case of this impact of liberalisation and globalisation of real estate investment on informal settlements and policies that handle them. If the State at times acts as mediator or favour regularization, more often public authorities now implements ambiguous or even antagonistic policies, and often give the preference to investors. As a result, there are more and more forced evictions of residents, who move in distant suburbs, excluded from the heart of the city. Next to the Right to the City, competition for land of central and pericentral urban zones today brings to light the idea of the Right to a Place and to the Urban Centre. 16.1.