Urbanisation and Urban Growth

486 Words2 Pages
Generally, across the world, more economically developed countries are more urbanised than countries that are less economically developed, but in recent years those countries in the developing world have rapidly begun to become more urban. In 2011, the percentage of the population of more economically developed countries such as the USA, and Japan was over 80%. This is because few people in these countries work or live in the countryside because of improvements in technology and mechanisation, so most people live and work in urban settlements. In comparison, poorer countries, particularly those in sub-Saharan Africa have a much lower percentage of the population living in urban areas, usually between 0% and 40%. This is because many people are uneducated and must work manual jobs which mean they must work in rural area. Many families also own and work farms, so they cannot live in urban areas. Although most developing countries are largely rural at the moment, many are becoming more urban at exponential rates, a lot more quickly than more developed countries that are already mostly urban. For example, Nigeria, which is currently around 50% urban, is projected to be between 60% and 79% urban by 2050, and urban growth will have been so much that Lagos, Nigeria’s biggest city, will be the 11th most populous city in the world by 2025, with a population of 19 million, ahead of Los Angeles and Buenos Aires. Between 1970 and 1990, the number of cities with 10 million or more inhabitants grew from 2 to 10. By 20125 this number will be 37. Of these, 15 will be in developing countries, including Dhaka, Bangladesh, with a projected population of 22.9 million, and Kinshasa, Democratic Rep. of the Congo, which will have a population of around 15 million. There are two reasons for these huge growths of urban populations in developing countries: natural increase and rural
Open Document