Land development needs reform<\/p>\n
By Tommy Firman<\/p>\n
BANDUNG (JP): One of the main issues that will emerge with
\nurban development is the need to design an effective, efficient
\nand equitable expansion of urban land resources. Therefore, there
\nis a need to reform and reorientate the policies for urban land
\ndevelopment.<\/p>\n
The urban land policy basically refers to the government's
\nagenda for the control, allocation and utilization of urban land
\nresources.<\/p>\n
It is commonly believed that too much government intervention
\nis not conducive for the urban land market to work effectively.
\nIt is not whether the intervention is too much or too little but
\nwhether it is effective enough to steer land development.<\/p>\n
The management of urban land resources in the future should
\naim at increasing the effectiveness and efficiency of land
\nutilization based on principles of \"equity\" and \"sustainability\".<\/p>\n
The ideal aspirations might in turn affect the need for a
\n\"policy reform\" in urban land utilization, as stipulated in the
\nBasic Agrarian Law (UUPA) promulgated in 1961, which stressed
\nthat land has its social and functional values and should not be
\nused as a trading commodity for maximum profits.<\/p>\n
First, the issues of land ownership and transfers. The basic
\nprinciple is to prevent excessive ownership of urban land as well
\nas inefficient land utilization. It can become a matter of
\nspeculation which will ruin the public and even cause social
\ndisparities.<\/p>\n
In fact, this matter has been addressed in the Basic Agrarian
\nLaw which is still relevant to the present condition. But the
\ncontext has now shifted from rural land to urban land. The fact
\nthat concentration of urban land in big cities is in the hands of
\nlarge developers is increasing. Some tend to become land capital
\ngain seekers, this results in escalating land prices but
\ndecreases in land utilization.<\/p>\n
This demands a long-term policy encompassing the principles
\nand control mechanism of land use, including location and
\nbuilding permits. It should be kept in mind that a location
\npermit is primarily a tool to control land use development, not
\nan exclusive right for land acquisition as it has been perceived.<\/p>\n
Another important aspect is more \"equitable\" land transfers,
\nas the prevailing mechanism of land transfers seems to give too
\nmuch authority to those who have been granted a right of land
\nacquisition.<\/p>\n
There should be a mechanism for land transfer that will not
\nphysically evict and take ownership of land from the owners. The
\nland owners should be considered \"share holders\" in development
\nprojects carried out by the private sectors, notably developers
\non their lands. This is undoubtedly the essence of partnership
\nbetween the private sector, the community and the government.<\/p>\n
Second, land utilization in urban areas should be based on a
\ncity plan. However it seems that in the attempt to accommodate
\nrapidly growing economic activities, the urban city plan has been
\nadjusted without proper procedures.<\/p>\n
Given the vast land use changes taking place in large cities
\nthere should be clear and transparent requirements regarding the
\nprocess of land use change and shore reclamations. These matters
\nhave a great impact on the socioeconomic condition as well as the
\nenvironment.<\/p>\n
The control of a land use plan is difficult in the situation
\nwhere a plan is concealed from the public, as has been the case
\nin many cities. Therefore, urban city plans should be made
\navailable and accessible to the public so that it motivates them
\nto actively participate in urban development control.<\/p>\n
Third, urban land taxation which includes property taxes and
\nvalue-added taxes can serve as legal instruments in controlling
\nurban land utilization. But it seems that these economic
\ninstruments have not been effective in Indonesian cities.<\/p>\n
There is even a tendency for land taxes as well as location
\npermits and building permits to be considered instruments for
\ncollecting revenues instead of controlling land use development.<\/p>\n
Fourth, land development institutions are still fragmented and
\nlacking in coordination both at a local and national level.
\nCoordination needs to be improved.<\/p>\n
The Development Planning Board of the first administrative
\nlevel (province) and the second administrative level should be
\nable to undertake these tasks.<\/p>\n
The need for decentralization in decision making, regarding
\nland development, is increasing as the process is often too
\ncentralized and takes little consideration of socioeconomic
\nconditions at the local level.<\/p>\n
The role of private developers in urban land development is
\nvery important and should be encouraged. Therefore, a conducive
\nenvironment needs to be developed. One of the components is a
\nlegal assurance for their operation.<\/p>\n
There should also be support of financial institutions that
\ncan provide loans for such undertakings -- notably the small and
\nmedium-sized developers -- and the presence of competent
\nconstruction industries as well as suppliers of construction
\nmaterials.<\/p>\n
It should be kept in mind, however, that if the system of land
\nregulations and institutions are weak, the role of private
\nsectors in urban land development would tend to be out of
\ncontrol.<\/p>\n
Fifth, the difficulty experienced in urban land management in
\ndeveloping countries is a lack of adequate information and data
\non land affairs to be used as a basis for decision making and
\nplanning for urban land development.<\/p>\n
Ideally, there should be a land registration system, covering
\nat least the data on real estate registry, ownership and rights,
\nin the form of maps.<\/p>\n
In other words, there should be a national registry of real
\nestate data. Fortunately, at present the National Land Agency
\nwith the assistance from the World Bank, is carrying out a grand
\nprogram called Land Administration Program (LAP), which is
\nessentially a reform in land administration, human resources, and
\ninstitutions.<\/p>\n
Improving regulations and institutions should become the
\nagenda for the reformation of urban land development.<\/p>\n
This will cover: land use control; clear and transparent
\nmechanisms and regulations regarding changes of land use as well
\nas shore reclamation; more equitable land transfer mechanisms;
\ntaxation that can offer incentives and disincentives for
\nsustainable and equitable land utilization; procurement of land
\nbanking; and others.<\/p>\n
Furthermore, institution building is necessary for better
\ncoordination and decentralization of land resource development.<\/p>\n
The writer is a lecturer in the Department of Regional and
\nCity Planning, Bandung's Institute of Technology.<\/p>",
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