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Bandar Seri Begawan was formerly known as Brunei Town until the 3rd October 1970. The population of Bandar Seri Begawan is about 22,000; whilst, Kampong Ayer is about 24,000 (1995 Official Estimate). The present site of Bandar Seri Begawan as it is today is quite new. The whole of the early settlement or the built-up area on this site was bombed flat by the Allied forces before the end of World War II.

The development of Bandar Seri Begawan can be related to its physical surroundings. Land to the east of Sungai Kianggeh is very hilly, thus restricting the spread of the town in the easterly direction. Where there is relatively flat land, development is evident. The town has therefore tended to spread to the North along Jalan Berakas and Jalan Muara and to the West along Jalan Tutong and Jalan Gadong.

The history of the capital (Bandar Seri Begawan) extends back to the 7th century; at which time there appears to have been a water village (Kampong Ayer) close to the present location of Kampong Kota Batu and the National Museum building. Since then, the growth and development of the capital has been linked to various locations on Sungai Brunei that provided a base for the trading, fishing and other marine activities of the Brunei Malays. The development of the Bandar Seri Begawan area, as the records state, has undergone three changes in site First, it was at Kota Batu, then to Kampong Ayer. The final location is the present site of Bandar Seri Begawan.

By the 16th century, Antonio Pigafetta indicated that the number of families as many as 25,000; generally considered to be unlikely but does nonetheless suggest a very substantial settlement. He also indicated that Brunei Town (a water town, or rather the water village ) was populous, which was surprisingly around 100,000, powerful and wealthy ( Brown, 1970; Ibrahim, 1971; Nicholl, 1975). The town was probably the largest when Brunei controlled the whole of Borneo and most of the Philippines. Since then its population has changed as a result of war and migration to the interior.

The development of the land-based city centre began in 1906, after the first British Resident, Mc Arthur, encouraged a movement of people: a movement onto the reclaimed land on the left bank of Sungai Brunei. The Sultan himself moved his residence in 1909 and the Chinese shopkeepers followed in 1910. The Municipal Board was established in 1921, and a new mosque and new Istana built on land in 1922. By late 1920s all government buildings, a number of shop houses and many private houses began to dot the new settlement.

Since its declaration as the Municipal Area and the Capital of Brunei Darussalam in 1920, the perimeter of Bandar Seri Begawan had changed five times. The first was made through the British Resident's Office Notification No.97 of 1931 dated the 26th May, 1931; the second through the Sanitary Board Notification dated the 17th March 1936; the third through the British Resident's Office Notification No.8 of 1940 dated the 8th January 1940; the fourth through the British Resident's Office Notification No.53 of 1949 dated the 8th June 1949; and the fifth through the British Resident's Office Notification No 321/1956 on 31st September 1956. The final declaration confirmed the existing area of the Bandar Seri Begawan Municipality as 12.87 square kilometres to take effect on the 1st October 1956.

Figure 1: The Bandar Seri Begawan Municipality and its environment

Kampong Ayer has not been included as part of the Bandar Seri Begawan Municipality. According to the law, it could be described as a suburb of Bandar Seri Begawan. Perhaps it is relevant to say that Kampong Ayer is a unique part of the Bandar Seri Begawan urban area, being placed above the water and its proximity to the city centre. Some people, especially tourists believe that the Bandar Seri Begawan urban area comprises two distinct entities -- one on the ground and the other placed above the water. The structure of the Kampong Ayer portrayed as a settlement divided into wards ( villages ) and "mukims"
( = villages grouped into bigger entities ).

The creation of the Bandar Seri Begawan Municipal Board/Department

The Brunei Town Sanitary Board, administered by the British Resident, was established on the 1st January 1921. The Board served as an appropriate authority to deal with the development of the new town. To accommodate the ever increasing needs of the developing town, the Brunei Town Sanitary Board was upgraded to a Municipal Board -- the Brunei Town Municipal Board in 1953. The Brunei Town Municipal Department was also created. The Brunei Town Municipal Board and Department were administered by the British Resident until 1959.

Starting from 1959, the Brunei-Muara District Officer acted as the Chairman of the Brunei Town Municipal Board and Head of the Brunei Town Municipal Department. However, the day-to-day affairs of the Department were run by a full-time Municipal Secretary. The changes to the management and administration of the Brunei Town Municipal Board and Department took place in 1972 when the Chairman of the Municipal Board was appointed to the chairmanship of the Brunei Town Municipal Board and as the department-head of the Brunei Town Municipal Department.

Since Brunei Darussalam's Independence in 1984, the Bandar Seri Begawan Municipal Board/ Department is placed under the purview of the Ministry Of Home Affairs. The Bandar Seri Begawan Municipal Board is created in accordance to the provisions provided by the Municipal Boards Act of 1920. By this very Act the Bandar Seri Begawan Municipal Authority effectively becomes the Competent Authority in Bandar Seri Begawan.

Figure 2: The Bandar Seri Begawan Municipal Board/Department within the Ministry of Home Affairs' Structure

The Authority's functions are not only dictated by the Municipal Boards Act ( which was revised in 1984 ) they are also determined by the By-Laws and other related Acts, namely:-

The Municipal Boards By-Laws of 1922, which were passed under the power given by section 5 of the Municipal Boards Enactment of 1920. ( Note: This is an old-version and has never been revised since 1922. )

The Road Traffic ( Bandar Seri Begawan Municipal Board ) ( Parking Places ) Rules 1972 and its Amendments; i.e, the 1979 Amendment, the 1983 Amendment, the 1990 Amendment, and the1993 Amendment. These rules were made by the Bandar Seri Begawan Municipal Board, with the approval of the Motor Transport Licensing Authority, under the power conferred by subsection (1) of section 92 of the Road Traffic Act ( Chapter 68 ).

The Road Traffic ( Bandar Seri Begawan ) ( Private Parking Places ) Rules 1997. These rules were made by the Bandar Seri Begawan Municipal Board, with the approval of the Motor Transport Licensing Authority, under the power conferred by subsection ( 1 ) of section 92 of the Road Traffic Act ( Chapter 68 ).

The Miscellaneous Act of 1983 which supplements the Municipal Boards Act of 1920 pertaining to the licensing, regulating and the controlling of certain commercial places and activities and their purposes incidental thereto.

The Minor Offences Act of 1989 which supplements the Municipal Boards Act of 1920 pertaining to the controlling of the environmental cleanliness. The Road Traffic ( Brunei Town Municipal Board ) ( Bus and Taxi Stands ) Rules 1963.