Urbanisation
Geography: AQA GCSE, topic 4.1.1
Urbanisation
Urbanisation is the rise in the proportion of people living in towns and cities, defined as urban areas. From 2007, the world’s urban population exceeded the world's rural population. Urbanisation happens differently in countries with different incomes:
High income countries (HICs)
- The UK began to urbanise in the late 1800s when lots of people moved from farms in the countryside into cities to work in the cotton and textiles industries.
- In 1950, 79% of the UK population lived in towns or cities. In 2013, 83% of the UK population lived in towns or cities.
- As cities grow, they become more and more crowded, causing some people to move back to rural areas.
- But, improving transport infrastructure allows people to commute into cities to work from further away. Crossrail will allow more people to commute into London from further away and the HS2 high-speed rail project theoretically expands the number of people who can commute into London massively.
Low income countries (LICs)
- Ethiopia, Niger, and Nepal are examples of LICs.
- Ethiopia is in Africa and has a population of 105 million people. In 2019, it was estimated that 20% of Ethiopia's population lived in towns or cities, meaning that most people still lived in rural, countryside areas.
- In the next few decades, people expect these low-income countries to experience rapid urbanisation.
Newly emerging economies (NEEs)
- China, India, Brazil, and Thailand are examples of NEEs.
- These countries are experiencing rapid urbanisation.
- In 1978, 18% of China's population lived in cities. In 2018, 59% of China's population lived in cities.
Test yourself on Urbanisation
China's Urbanisation
Why did the UK begin to urbanise in the late 1800s?