Implementing land use planning in the third world: The case of Bangladesh

Land use planning in the Third World has not measured up to expectations. More recent works that address the issue emphasize the underlying implementation problems. An inventory of literature reveals that the academic debate on planning and implementation issues tends to be entrenched into two opposing camps. On one side of the camp are those who would like to approach the problem by looking at implementation as part and parcel of the political process. On the other side are those who would rather see it in instrumental terms. In this article it is argued that the two perspectives are not mutually exclusive. The analysis is based on the assumption that the respective perspective looks at different aspects of the same problem, asking different questions and receiving answers accordingly. The relevancy of applying both the perspectives is illustrated by a discussion of land use planning and implementation in Bangladesh. From this case it can be seen that the problems of planning in the Third World is not only to have the right kind of policy and strategies, but also to be able to carry out intended policies and programmes.