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| By: Sha - at February 12, 2013 |
The Trend and Challenges Facing the Urban World
The Shifting Trend of Urbanization
 The
urban population for the first time in history overtook the rural
population in 2008. The big cities, especially the megacities, are largely the
main contributors in expanding the urban population. Over the past few decades,
the continuous migration of people from rural area to urban centers has caused
rapid worldwide urbanization. Technological development, rapid expansion
of communications, better employment opportunities and healthcare facilities,
better options for education, better services, urban amenities and civic
benefits are the main reasons for this huge influx of people from
rural areas to cities or towns. The challenges faced by todays big cities,
especially megacities, are mostly due to the unexpected and unplanned population growth. But the
big cities provide opportunities for social mobilization, relieving pressure on
natural habitat, reducing poverty, and addressing environmental degradation. Good governance is the key to address the problems big cities are facing.
The Causes of Urbanization
There are numerous reasons for urbanization. The following are some of the main
reasons or causes of urbanization:
The development of technology and industrialization
Far better employment opportunities because of the presence of factories,
businesses, and offices
The growth of local, regional and international trade, especially during the 19th
and 20th centuries
Migration of population to the cities from villages due to lack of basic
amenities such as healthcare, education, and jobs
Migration of millions of people from rural to urban areas due to the jobs
generated by industrialization every year, particularly in the developing
countries or emerging economies.
Growth of factories, service-based economy in cities
Better standard of living
Better income opportunities
Civic benefits and entertainment
The lack of basic amenities in villages
Decreased use of lands for crops
Decrease in the number of jobs in rural areas
Demand for laborers in factories and services industries in urban centers
Immigration to many cities, towns or urban centers in general over the
centuries
More offers of jobs and wages in urban areas
Natural growth of population in cities by natural births
 The agricultural
sectors cannot provide employment to the huge population living in villages. Besides, agricultural sectors do not flourish always as fast as other sectors.
Natural disasters, failing crops, and decreased employment opportunities
particularly in least developed and developing countries push people living in
villages into urban areas.
The economic reasons behind urbanization are mainly the influence of
industries. Industries are mainly located in urban areas. The concentration of
industries and back link industries tend to be close to each other for certain
advantages and benefits. Therefore, people tend to live or work in and around
these industrial areas for jobs. These industries need a supply of a very
large workforce filled by population from rural areas.
The worlds population is expected to be at least 9 billion by 2050 up from
about 7 billion at present. There are reports from various sources that this huge growth
will be in developing and least developed countries. The greatest growth of
population is expected to be in thousands of slums located in numerous cities
and other urban centers in the world, particularly in the developing world.
The Developments of Megacities
 As people
are migrating from their rural homes to begin new lives in urban areas,
the urban population is increasing constantly. Although it is not possible to
say exactly when urbanization took place, the fact is throughout history
urbanization has taken place in the world. The emergence of very large
cities, especially megacities (cities with a population of 10 million or more), has been one of the
most distinctive developments in urbanization. The number of megacities in the world
in 1950 was only two. Today, in 2013, there are 26 megacities in the world and
it is estimated that by 2025, there will be 29 megacities alone in the
developing world.
The Major Challenges Faced by Big Cities in the World
Many big cities all over the world are today economically stagnant and badly hit
by recessions. The demand for housing, access to water, education and healthcare
are ever increasing which the local authorities cannot provide due to the lack
of funds or money. Pollution is one of the biggest problems for cities,
particularly for big cities. Air pollution is one of the main culprits among
others degrading the environment and making cities unbearable to live in. More than
a billion people today live in slums in Asia, Africa, and Latin America
according to several reports. Some of the negative effects of megacities or
urban centers in general are:
Environmental degradation
Slums
Poverty
Unemployment
Poor health
Lack of infrastructure
Lacking access to education
Income inequalities
Congestion
Poverty is growing faster in urban areas than in rural areas which is forcing people
to live in unhygienic and dangerous conditions. The unhealthy and unplanned
growth of megacities is causing serious problems to the environment. Migration
due to environmental degradation, poverty, job opportunities are driving people
off of the rural areas. Many megacities in the developing world are overloaded
with the existing infrastructure and cannot provide for support to the huge
people looking for even basic amenities. The lack of decent housing and
sanitation, health care and education, and jobs have forced hundreds of millions
of people to live in slums.
Conclusion
It is not possible to say exactly where and when the process of urbanization
began. After modern industrialization, urbanization got some momentum. The
20th century saw the rise of many large cities and some very large cities which are
known as megacities. Today, just over 50% of the world lives in cities. By 2050
the urban population will be over 70% of the worlds population. The UN has
rightly termed urbanization as unstoppable. But the growth of cities,
particularly megacities, is leading to unhealthy environment, new slums,
unbalance developments, income inequalities, pollution, and unplanned and
unprecedented urban sprawl. The problems of megacities can be an excellent
opportunity to address the problems and solve the problems in an eco-friendly
way to ensure there is less impact on climate change, and environmental
degradation.
Sources
The author of this article researched various articles published on the
following websites to gather information and ideas.
unfpa.com
bbc.co.uk
thetelegraph.co.uk
wikihow.com
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