Globalisation and inequality in urban South-east Asia

For the management of a city to be successful, its policies need to be conducive to 'social sustainability'. This is defined as development compatible with the emergence of a social contract, one that fosters an environment that will help harmonise relations between the city's culturally and socially diverse groups and encourage social integration and an improvement in the lives of all its citizens. These issues are discussed particularly in the light of recent experience in four capital cities in South-east Asia: Jakarta, Bangkok, Manila and Kuala Lumpur.