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Urbanisation: why cities grow

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Since about 2007 more than half the world's people have lived in towns and cities. Some cities now hold more people than whole countries.

What is urbanisation?

Urbanisation is the increase in the share of people living in urban areas (towns and cities) rather than rural areas (the countryside).
In Britain it happened during the Industrial Revolution. Today it is fastest in many lower-income countries in Africa and Asia.
A megacity has more than 10 million people. Examples include Tokyo, Delhi, Shanghai, Mumbai and Lagos.

Push and pull

Cities grow through rural-urban migration and natural increase (young migrants have children in the city).
Push factors drive people away from the countryside: few jobs, poor services, drought or conflict.
Pull factors draw people to cities: jobs, schools, hospitals and hopes of a better life.

Challenges and solutions

When cities grow very fast, there may not be enough housing. Many migrants build homes in informal settlements (also called slums or shanty towns), often without clean water or sanitation.
Other challenges: traffic, pollution and waste.
Solutions include site-and-service schemes (giving plots with water and electricity), better public transport, and upgrading existing settlements.
Worked example

Explain two reasons why a city in a lower-income country is growing fast.

  1. Rural-urban migration: people are pushed from the countryside by lack of jobs, and pulled by city work and services.
  2. Natural increase: many migrants are young, so they have children in the city.
  3. Together these add large numbers of people every year.

Answer: Rural-urban migration (push and pull factors) and high natural increase among young city dwellers.

Key idea

Urbanisation is a rising share of people living in towns and cities; over half the world has been urban since about 2007. Megacities have over 10 million people. Push and pull factors drive rural-urban migration. Fast growth can create informal settlements, traffic and pollution.

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