Prosperity and inclusion: The impact of public housing supply on urban inclusive growth in China

Due to the negative image of public housing projects, housing policies globally tend to shift from government-led to market-led, from project-based subsidies to household-based subsidies. What theories does the Chinese government rely on to launch a large number of public housing construction projects since the beginning of 21th Century? In the past decades, what kind of impact has the supply of public housing produced on urban development? From the perspective of urban inclusive growth, a discussion on the impact of public housing supply policy is not sufficient to fully analyze this diversity. Therefore, this paper includes theoretical and empirical research to explore the association between the supply of public housing and urban inclusive growth in China. A data-driven method is adopted that provides analysis of China?s socio-economic situation. Based on nationwide observations, the structural equation model is applied in testing the impact of public housing supply on urban inclusive growth. The results run counter to the stereotype and indicate that, at this stage, increasing the supply of public housing not only contributes to urban social integration, but also does not hinder urban economic growth. This study shares the Chinese experience of the impact of public housing supply on urban inclusive growth, and provides support for the urban development model based on inclusive growth theory.