Lessons learned in city innovation in ASEAN megacities

• Main Author: Velasco, Aida Licaros
• Format: text
• Published: Animo Repository 2012
• Subjects: Cities and towns—Growth; City planning; Technological innovations; Urbanization—Southeast Asia; Technology and Innovation; Urban Studies and Planning
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/faculty_research/12599
• Institution: De La Salle University

Studies on innovation systems have focused on national system of innovation and how this has cascaded to firm level innovation. On the other hand, experience of ASEAN countries have shown that though there is no formal innovation system set, innovations have been actively thriving not just focused on the profitable ventures that most innovations create but likewise extended to innovations that aim to address social issues like housing, transportation and mobility, unemployment, climate change, and healthcare. Most of these social issues are present in megacities, This paper discusses the new paradigm developed in the study of city innovation systems in the City Innovation System in ASEAN Megacities and how they try to solve social problems in the city. Migration into the city for better job opportunities and perceived economic conditions created social problems on housing called illegal settlers. The city innovations on housing to address the issue of illegal settlers of four ASEAN cities namely: Ho Chi Min, Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur and Manila are presented in this paper. These innovations are Renovation for Low Income Earners; Miasonette Housing Project in Prumpung, East Jakarta; Kampong Adullah Hukom in Jakarta; and Gawad Kalinga for Manila.The city innovations on housing were analyzed according to the five dimensions and seven aspects of innovation. The five dimensions are product, service, process, paradigm, and institutions while the seven aspects are novelty, impact, equity, economic and financial stability, environmental sustainability, transferability, and political acceptability. Four common success factors can be drawn from the four housing innovations. These are: presence of a clear vision; active participation of residents of beneficiary communities; strong support from the local government; and private, government, and beneficiary partnership.