Date of Award
Summer 2024
Document Type
Thesis (Master's)
Department or Program
Master of Arts in Liberal Studies
First Advisor
Dr. Peter DeShazo
Second Advisor
Dr. Roopika Risam
Third Advisor
Dr. Erin Collins
Abstract
Abstract
Karachi, one of the largest megacities in the world, and the economic crown jewel of Pakistan hosts upwards of 20 million people. The number is truly astounding given that the city has only developed into an urban behemoth following the departure of the British Empire. Within a span of seventy-seven years, Karachi has become home to a diverse, immigrant, working class population with immense economic promise given its status as the country’s primary port. At the same time however, the city has found itself as the center of interests for powerful political stakeholders given its proximity to the Afghan War.
It, thus, comes to no one’s surprise that the real estate in Karachi has become a site of contention for various different groups with their own vested interests in the city. At the same time, following the decolonization of the Global South and the proliferation of neoliberal economic ideas in the world, the ideas of “urban development” modeled after international capital hubs as markers of economic success have also taken root in postcolonial states. In megacities like Karachi where the political environment remains volatile, elite capture has become normalized via state institutions that continue their jurisdictional overreaches, and there is a huge working class populace trying to make ends meet, this naturally creates a housing crisis.
In this paper, I attempt to examine Karachi’s urban development landscape as it has evolved over the years through the episteme of postcolonial Marxist urbanism, identify the core problems that plague the city’s urban landscape in particular the housing market, and analyze the complex web of political stakeholders in the city that have rendered Karachi among the least livable cities in the world, even as it rapidly develops.
Recommended Citation
Faisal, Aimun, "The Political Economy of Land Development in Karachi" (2024). Dartmouth College Master’s Theses. 187.
https://digitalcommons.dartmouth.edu/masters_theses/187
