Land readjustment models for urban development and transformation in developing countries: Applicability of alternative models in land readjustment practices in Tanzania

Urban growth in developing countries requires the acquisition of new land in quantity and quality to meet public infrastructure needs and urban development. Planners, land developers and various actors involved in managing urbanization and controlling urban growth will secure extra land to cuter for public requirements. The case of Tanzania highlights a crucial observation: the prevalence of both formal and informal land development within cities, resulting in a dualistic urban land development scenario. This duality is characterized by informal land development overshadowing its formal counterpart, thereby giving rise to a range of challenges in urban land development. Land acquisition through expropriation and prevalent patterns of urban land development have yielded notable adverse effects on both landowners and pertinent public institutions. In these circumstances, the aim of the research is to explore innovative models of urban land development that have proven successful in non-English-speaking countries, to diversify the approaches to urban land development, thereby maximizing the benefits and potential advantages of various strategies while evaluating their feasibility for implementation. The research methodology encompasses a mixed approach, combining survey data collected through both physical and online means with insights drawn from in-depth interviews with experts and institutions. The findings underscore that the practice of land acquisition through pre-land development expropriation has fallen short of mitigating the challenges associated with urban land development. Instead, it has contributed to adverse effects on affected communities, largely attributed to the absence of suitable financial mechanisms, lack of participation, transparency issues, and the absence of a robust regulatory framework. Post-acquisition impacts, encompassing spatial exclusion, social justice, marginalization, socio-economic repercussions and poverty underscore the paradigm shift in land development and urban regeneration. The study asserts the necessity of adopting comprehensive and inclusive land redevelopment approaches. This entails avoiding resource-intensive and coercive state-led measures, such as compulsory acquisition in favour of win-win and self-financing strategies that reduce public financial risks, address social and spatial exclusions, and prioritize environmental protections. In conclusion, it is imperative to emphasize the adoption of land redevelopment approaches, either independently or in juxtaposition with conventional strategies. These approaches possess the potential for sustainable urban land development alongside essential infrastructure development. As such, the engagement of experts in real estate development and management within relevant central and local administrative bodies becomes essential for the successful execution of these strategies.