Place branding strategies and urban transformation in ’emerging world class’ cities

Abstract: Countries in the Persian Gulf and Pacific Asia have in a short time transformed themselves into economic powerhouses. The urban environment in these countries has been highly impacted by a tremendous economic growth and an emphasis on megaprojects containing modernistic urban design as well as the hosting of prestigious events. This has evidently been a part of well-defined strategies in order to maintain growth and to secure future development. Although same or at least similar strategies are used by many ‘emerging world class’ cities, they act in very different environments and with different preconditions. These strategies are mainly thought to originate from theories about global competitiveness where cities act and compete in a global hierarchy. One of the ‘emerging world class’ cities is Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Malaysia. In the case study provided in this thesis, evidence of a very tight and defined strategy containing the usage of world-class urban projects as a facilitator of future growth is presented. This strategy is also a product of a powerful government with a highly motivated Prime minister with almost unrestricted possibilities. Not many other actors have played a significant role in the recent urban transformation of Kuala Lumpur. A different perspective is also investigated which seeks to explain the development using a more domestic approach rather than the global perspective which is emphasized through this study.