Literature Review What is Public Space?

Public space is defined as space to which people normally have unrestricted access and right of way, therefore, in other words, public places, and spaces are public because anyone is entitled to be physically present in them. As public stands for "people" and space is known as "place", so in other words, “public space” is “a place of the people”.5 The difference between public space and private space in Vietnam, however, has been known to be more complicated due to its cultural orientation.6 The term “The Sidewalk Economy” has been created due to a form of business developed by vendors at sidewalks, pavements. This term also targets seller with little income, especially, working class, trying to make ends meet. Therefore, the sidewalk has been the place to create fortune. Although “Sidewalk Economy” appears mostly around the world but there is no place like Vietnam, where sidewalk has become a crucial part of local culture and most importantly, this has been considered, by The Hien Dang, an unique pin point of public informality.7

5 R Sendi & B. G. Marušić, 2012, International Encyclopedia of Housing and Home, 21-28.

6 Lisa B. W. Drummon, Street Scenes: Practices of Public and Private Space in Urban Vietnam, 2000, 2380.

7 The Hien Dang, Street Life as the negotiation process: case study of Sidewalk Informal Economy in Ho Chi Minh City, IOP Publishi, 2018, 1.