Urbanization PRIMATE CITIES MEXICO CITY 9 8 million

Urbanization

PRIMATE CITIES: MEXICO CITY: 9. 8 million (Guadalajara: 1. 7 million) BANGKOK: 5. 9 million (Chiangmai: 278, 000) LONDON: 6. 9 million (Birmingham: ~ 1 million) MOST MEGACITIES ARE LOCATED IN THIRD WORLD Mega Cities

Distribution of Cities

Regional Urban Growth

Population by City Size

Urbanization: Summary MEGA Cities: Cities with over 8 million population [Definitions vary] Rank Size Rule: Hierarchy of Cities Primate Cities: Cities much larger than other cities in country (e. g. Seoul = 34 x Pusan) Four Country Primacy Index: FCPI= P 1 / (P 1+P 2+P 3+P 4)

Third World Urbanization Level: Latin America > Asia > Africa [Exception: China and India in Asia] Urbanization Rate: Africa, Asia > Latin America

Urban Growth

Migration components: • Rural to Urban; • Urban to Urban; • Circulators Why migrate? • Lure of big city • Job opportunities (pull factor) • Lack of rural opportunities (push factor)

Why Urbanize? Urbanization = Economic Growth (? ) Agglomeration & Localization Economies n Potential Markets n Exception: Africa n Rural Urban Linkages n Symbiotic Economic Relationship

Why not urbanize? Is Urbanization Good? n Urban Bias (Michael Lipton) n Political and Economic Domination of urban groups n Lopsided development, more favorable to urban areas n Anti-Urban Policies n Ujaamization (Tanzania, Julius Nyerere) n Cultural Revolution (China, Mao Tse-Tung)