Politics and Governance in Urban Southeast Asia

Just published!

Edited by Edward Aspinall, Allen Hicken, Paul D. Hutchcroft, and Meredith L. Weiss

Why have some Southeast Asian cities become laboratories of reform while others remain mired in old patterns of patronage politics and substandard services? This has become an important question now that over half of Southeast Asia’s population lives in urban areas, transforming the politics of the region. Quintessentially urban problems—traffic congestion, sanitation, public transport, housing and the like—increasingly preoccupy policymakers, while the region’s swelling urban middle classes expect their mayors and city governments to provide ever-better infrastructure and amenities. Drawing on close case studies of a diverse set of 17 urban areas across four Southeast Asian countries—Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Thailand—this volume offers fresh insights into how the region’s urban politics are changing. It provides a new framework for understanding why some cities are flourishing and others are not. Exploring the factors that shape distinct local governance regimes in these cities, the volume also throws light on how urban residents use community associations, informal networks, and other political mechanisms to access the public services they want and need.

“As urbanization continues apace, prospects for effective and equitable governance in Southeast Asia are increasingly bound up with the political dynamics of its towns and cities. This timely volume provides a compelling comparative examination of local governance regimes within and between urban spaces in four Southeast Asian countries.” – Tim Bunnell, National University of Singapore

“By providing case studies of urban politics and policy from throughout Southeast Asia, the authors establish the current state of the field and set out new ideas and new directions for others to follow. This book should reshape the ways we think about the politics of the region.” – James Ockey, University of Canterbury

Edward Aspinall is professor in the Department of Political and Social Change, Coral Bell School of Asia Pacific Affairs, Australian National University.

Allen Hicken is professor in the Department of Political Science, University of Michigan.

Paul D. Hutchcroft is professor emeritus in the Department of Political and Social Change, Coral Bell School of Asia Pacific Affairs, Australian National University.

Meredith L. Weiss is professor in the Department of Political Science, Rockefeller College of Public Affairs & Policy, University at Albany, SUNY.

Publication Year: 2026
384pp, 229 x 152mm
11 b/w maps & charts
Paperback
ISBN: 978-981-325-341-4