Study Session 5 Urbanisation: Trends, Causes and Effects

Transcription

1 Study Session 5 Urbanisation: Trends, Causes and Effects Copyright 2016 The Open University

2 Contents Introduction 3 Learning Outcomes for Study Session Urbanisation trends Goba trends in urbanisation Urbanisation in Ethiopia Causes of urbanisation Natura increase of popuation Rura to urban migration Impacts of urbanisation Housing Water suppy and sanitation Wastes and poution Heath Food Economic and socia systems 16 Summary of Study Session 5 16 Sef-Assessment Questions (SAQs) for Study Session of 18 Tuesday 22 March 2016

3 Introduction Introduction More than haf of the word s popuation ives in urban areas. Due to the ongoing urbanisation and growth of the word s popuation, there wi be about 2.5 biion more peope added to the urban popuation by 2050, mainy in Africa and Asia. The word s urban areas are highy varied, but many cities and towns are facing probems such as a ack of jobs, homeessness and expanding squatter settements, inadequate services and infrastructure, poor heath and educationa services and high eves of poution. In this study session, you wi earn about the trends in urbanisation and the causes of urban growth. You wi aso earn about the demographic, heath, environmenta and socia consequences of urbanisation. Learning Outcomes for Study Session 5 When you have studied this session, you shoud be abe to: 5.1 Define and use correcty a of the key words printed in bod. (SAQs 5.1 and 5.2) 5.2 Describe the goba and oca trends in urbanisation. (SAQ 5.3) 5.3 Expain the main causes of urban growth. (SAQs 5.1 and 5.2) 5.4 Describe the main positive and negative impacts of urbanisation. (SAQ 5.4) 5.1 Urbanisation trends In Study Session 2 you earned about the overa trend in goba popuation growth. Most of this increase is taking pace in urban areas. Urbanisation is an increase in the number of peope iving in towns and cities. Urbanisation occurs mainy because peope move from rura areas to urban areas and it resuts in growth in the size of the urban popuation and the extent of urban areas. These changes in popuation ead to other changes in and use, economic activity and cuture. Historicay, urbanisation has been associated with significant economic and socia transformations. For exampe, urban iving is inked with higher eves of iteracy and education, better heath, ower fertiity and a onger ife expectancy, greater access to socia services and enhanced opportunities for cutura and poitica participation (UNDESA, 2014). However, urbanisation aso has disadvantages caused by rapid and unpanned urban growth resuting in poor infrastructures such as inadequate housing, water and sanitation, transport and heath care services Goba trends in urbanisation In 1960, the goba urban popuation was 34% of the tota; however, by 2014 the urban popuation accounted for 54% of the tota and continues to grow. By 2050 the proportion iving in urban areas is expected to reach 66% (UNDESA, 2014). Figure 5.1 shows the change in the rura and urban popuations of the word from 1950 through to projected figures up to the year of 18 Tuesday 22 March 2016

4 5.1 Urbanisation trends Figure 5.1 Urban and rura popuation of the word, (UNDESA, 2014) From Figure 5.1, in which year did the number of peope iving in urban areas first exceed the number iving in rura areas? The two ines cross at about 2007 or This is when urban first exceeded rura popuation. The process of urbanisation affects a sizes of settements, so viages graduay grow to become sma towns, smaer towns become arger towns, and arge towns become cities. This trend has ed to the growth of mega-cities. A mega-city is an urban area of greater than ten miion peope. Rapid expansion of city borders, driven by increases in popuation and infrastructure deveopment, eads to the expansion of city borders that spread out and swaow up neighbouring urban areas to form mega-cities. In 1970, there were ony three mega-cities across the gobe, but by the year 2000, the number had risen to 17 and by 2030, 24 more mega-cities wi be added (see Figure 5.2). 4 of 18 Tuesday 22 March 2016

5 5.1 Urbanisation trends Figure 5.2 The top mega-cities in the word in 1970, 2000 and (UNDESA, 2014) From Figure 5.2, in Africa how many mega-cities are predicted to exist by 2030 and how many have aready existed since the year 2000? Six mega-cities are predicted to exist in Africa by the year 2030 Luanda (Angoa), Lagos (Nigeria), Johannesburg (South Africa), Kinshasa (Democratic Repubic of Congo), Dar es Saaam (Tanzania) and Cairo (Egypt). There is one mega-city, Cairo, which has had a popuation of more than 10 miion since The goba trend in urbanisation is not the same in a parts of the word. Asia and Africa currenty have the highest rates of urbanisation. Figure 5.3 shows a comparison of trends in more or ess deveoped regions of the word. 5 of 18 Tuesday 22 March 2016

6 5.1 Urbanisation trends Figure 5.3 Trends in urban popuation growth, comparing more and ess deveoped regions. The graph shows the proportion of the tota popuation iving in urban areas. In Figure 5.3, how woud you describe the trends in urban growth in more and ess deveoped regions during this century? The growth of urban popuations in ess deveoped regions is increasing at a faster rate than deveoped regions. In 2000, in more deveoped parts of the word 76% of the popuation ived in urban areas and a sma increase to 83% is forecast by In ess deveoped regions, there was a much smaer proportion iving in urban areas in 2000 (ony 40%) but this is expected to increase significanty to 56% by Urbanisation in Ethiopia Ethiopia is one of the east urbanised countries in the word today, and ony 18% of its popuation ives in urban areas (JMP, 2014). In common with many other deveoping countries, however, this pattern is changing (Figure 5.4). Ethiopia s urban growth rate is more than 4.0% per year, which paces it among the highest in Africa and the word (MWUD, 2007). 6 of 18 Tuesday 22 March 2016

7 5.1 Urbanisation trends Figure 5.4 Changing proportion of urban and rura popuation in Ethiopia from 1950 to 2050 (estimated from 2014 onwards). (UNDESA, 2014) The rapid increase in urban popuations has meant that peri-urban areas are growing much more quicky than forma urban centres. Peri-urban areas are those areas immediatey around a town or city. They are areas in transition from countryside to city (rura to urban), often with undeveoped infrastructure, where heath and sanitation services are under pressure and where the natura environment is at risk of degradation. Defining the boundaries of urban, peri-urban and rura areas is not straightforward. They do not neaty separate themseves by ines on a map. On the contrary, the sprawing nature of urban deveopment means that the areas merge into each other. The ack of a cear boundary can make it difficut to assess the size of towns by their popuation or geographica area. However, judgements have to be made and, for panning and administrative purposes, data on popuation size are coected. Tabe 5.1 shows the number of towns and cities in Ethiopia by popuation in 2007, the most recenty pubished data. Tabe 5.1 Numbers and sizes of urban settements in Ethiopia. (Adapted from MWUD, 2007) Popuation of urban settement Number Up to 2, ,000 to 4, of 18 Tuesday 22 March 2016

8 5.2 Causes of urbanisation 5,000 to 19, ,000 to 49, ,000 to 99, ,000 to 200,000 8 Above 200,000 4 Tota 925 Of the four cities with a popuation of more than 200,000, by far the argest is Addis Ababa. In 2007, the popuation of Addis Ababa was more than 3 miion, which amounted to about 25% of Ethiopia s urban popuation (MWUD, 2007). The next-argest city, Dire Dawa, had ony 293,000 occupants at that time. The impacts of urbanisation are generay much more evident in the capita than in other towns and cities. 5.2 Causes of urbanisation Urbanisation in the deveoping word occurs for two main reasons: the natura increase of popuation and rura to urban migration Natura increase of popuation From Study Session 2 you wi know that the popuation is increasing in deveoping countries. This natura increase is a significant cause of the growing urban popuation. Expain what is meant by natura increase of popuation. Natura increase of popuation occurs when the number of births exceeds the number of deaths. As birth rates decine over time, according to the demographic transition mode, the roe of natura increase in determining the pace of urban popuation growth becomes ess important in comparison to migration Rura to urban migration In deveoping countries, urbanisation usuay occurs when peope move from viages to sette in cities in hope of gaining a better standard of iving. The movement of peope from one pace to another is caed migration. Migration is infuenced by economic growth and deveopment and by technoogica change (Marsha et a., 2009) and possiby aso by confict and socia disruption. It is driven by pu factors that attract peope to urban areas and push factors that drive peope away from the countryside. Empoyment opportunities in cities are one of the main pu factors. Many industries are ocated in cities and offer opportunities of high urban wages. There are aso more educationa institutions providing courses and training in a wide range of subjects and skis. Peope are attracted to an urban ifestye and the bright ights of city ife. A of these factors resut in both temporary and permanent migration to urban areas. 8 of 18 Tuesday 22 March 2016

9 5.3 Impacts of urbanisation Poor iving conditions and the ack of opportunities for paid empoyment in rura areas are push factors. Peope are moving away from rura areas because of poor heath care and imited educationa and economic opportunities as we as environmenta changes, droughts, foods, ack of avaiabiity of sufficienty productive and, and other pressures on rura iveihoods. Rura to urban migration can be a seective process, as some types of peope are more ikey to move than others. One of the factors invoved is gender, because empoyment opportunities vary greaty with different jobs for men and women. Another factor is age. Young peope are more ikey to move to towns, with more edery peope and chidren eft in rura areas. Seectivity in migration affects the popuation in both the rura and the urban areas. If more men move to towns and cities than women, this eaves a predominanty femae society in rura areas. 5.3 Impacts of urbanisation Athough peope are pued towards the advantages of cities, the impacts of urbanisation are mixed. First we wi ook at the many positive impacts of urbanisation before going on to describe some of the chaenges created by rapid unpanned urban growth. Thriving towns and cities are an essentia eement of a prosperous nationa economy. The gathering of economic and human resources in one pace stimuates innovation and deveopment in business, science, technoogy and industry. Access to education, heath, socia services and cutura activities is more readiy avaiabe to peope in cities than in viages. In cities, chid surviva rates are better than in rura areas because of better access to heath care (Muhoand et a., 2008). The density of urban popuations makes it easier and ess costy for the government and utiities to provide essentia goods and services (Brockerhoff, 2000). For exampe, the suppy of basic faciities such as fresh water and eectricity can be achieved with ess effort and ess cost per person. Schoos, coeges and universities are estabished in cities to deveop human resources. A variety of educationa courses are avaiabe, offering students a wide choice for their future careers. Peope of many casses and reigions ive and work together in cities, which creates better understanding and harmony and heps break down socia and cutura barriers. Cities aso have advanced communication and transport networks. However, these many benefits of urban ife do not appy to a. Rapid popuation increases and unpanned growth create an urban spraw with negative economic, socia, and environmenta consequences. In Ethiopia, the rate of urban growth often strains the capacity of oca and nationa government to provide urban residents with even the most basic services of housing, water suppy, sewerage and soid waste disposa (MWUD, 2008) Housing In deveoping countries, about a third of urban inhabitants ive in impoverished sums and squatter settements (UN-Habitat, 2012). Sums are urban areas that are heaviy popuated and have sub-standard housing with very poor iving conditions, creating severa probems. 9 of 18 Tuesday 22 March 2016

10 5.3 Impacts of urbanisation In Addis Ababa, a report in 2008 found that 80% of the houses in the city were cassed as sums due to the physica deterioration of its housing, overcrowding, high density, poor access and ack of infrastructure services (Toon, 2008) (Figure 5.5). Figure 5.5 Urban sum in Addis Ababa. Sum areas typicay suffer from: poor housing with sma, overcrowded houses buit very cose together using inadequate materias and with uncertain eectricity suppy restricted access to water suppies itte or no sanitation/atrine faciities and no soid waste disposa, which eads to a pouted and degraded oca environment inadequate heath care faciities which, couped with the poor iving conditions, increases sickness and death rates insecure iving conditions sum dweers may be forciby removed by andowners or other authorities. Many ow-income famiies gravitate to these informa settements that proiferate in and around towns. Poverty is one of the most critica issues facing urban areas. Urban poverty degrades both the physica and socia environment. This then makes it more difficut for peope to escape from poverty and they fa victim to the vicious cyce that you read about in Study Session of 18 Tuesday 22 March 2016

11 5.3 Impacts of urbanisation Water suppy and sanitation The provision of water and sanitation services to growing urban settements, peri-urban and sum areas presents critica chaenges. The increased demand for water from the growing popuation can pace added stress on aready stretched resources. In and around cities, water is commony in short suppy and subject to increasing competition by different users. Urban growth eads to increasing demand for water for industria and domestic use, which conficts with agricutura demands. It is especiay difficut to provide water and sanitation services to deprived areas and the poorest peope. Many peope in these areas ive without access to safe drinking water and proper sanitation. Even where adequate water suppies are avaiabe, sanitation and wastewater disposa are often inadequate or missing. Pit atrines and septic tanks are the usua methods for human waste disposa but they have imited capacity and are not aways adequate to cope with the quantity of waste produced by many peope iving cose together. Overfowing atrines and septic tanks contaminate surface water and create a serious heath risk. The ack of these essentia services threatens not ony the heath and the environment of peope in sum areas, but aso that of peope iving in forma urban areas. In Africa and Asia most of the urban centres have no sewers at a, which affects rich and poor aike. This is true of many cities with a miion or more inhabitants, as we as smaer cities and towns Wastes and poution Urbanisation affects and, water, air and widife because of the number of peope, the amount of buidings and construction, and the increased demands on resources. It has impacts on the physica environment in severa ways. Water quaity In deveoping countries, incuding Ethiopia, many rivers in urban areas are more ike open sewers (Figure 5.6). The ack of sanitation and sewerage systems has a dramatic impact on urban watercourses. Peope use the rivers to dispose of a their wastes from homes, industries and commercia businesses. Wastewater from human settements contains organic materia and nutrients; industria wastewater contains many different types of toxic poutant. These make the water unsafe for humans to use for many purposes incuding drinking and irrigation, as we as harming the fish and other animas and pants iving in the water. Any changes to the quaity of surface water aso affects groundwater because they are inked by the processes of the water cyce so poutants from the surface wi infitrate down and contaminate soi and groundwater as we. 11 of 18 Tuesday 22 March 2016

12 5.3 Impacts of urbanisation Figure 5.6 Urban rivers contain wastes from many sources. Soid waste In many towns and cities soid waste management is inefficient or non-existent. Soid waste management means the proper coection, transfer, recycing and disposa of a the soid materia we throw away, incuding pastics, paper and cardboard, food wastes, eectrica waste, etc. It aso incudes industria, hospita and institutiona wastes which often contain pathogens as we as hazardous and toxic chemicas, which need specia care. Urban waste often ends up in iega dumps on streets, open spaces, wasteands, drains or rivers. This is frequenty a probem in peri-urban areas, which are convenient for dumping wastes because of the avaiabiity of open space and ease of access from centra urban areas. This can ead to the poution of groundwater and surface waters which may be used as a source for drinking water. Sometimes the wastes are coected and taken to egaised waste disposa sites but these are not aways propery managed to protect water bodies and groundwater. The combustion of soid waste creates yet another environmenta probem. Peope want to get rid of the wastes and they wi burn them in their backyards if there is no coection system (Figure 5.7). 12 of 18 Tuesday 22 March 2016

13 5.3 Impacts of urbanisation Figure 5.7 Burning waste in an urban area. Air quaity Air quaity in towns and cities is frequenty very poor as a resut of air poution from many different sources (Figure 5.8). These incude: vehice exhausts smoke from domestic fires outputs from factory chimneys diese-powered generators dust from construction works and city streets. Poor air quaity has a significant impact on the heath of many urban residents as we as eaving a damaging and unsighty ayer of dust on pants, buidings and other surfaces. 13 of 18 Tuesday 22 March 2016

14 5.3 Impacts of urbanisation Figure 5.8 The brown coour of the air near the ground shows how pouted the air in Addis Ababa can be Heath Urbanisation can have both positive and negative effects on heath. The main benefits are associated with easier access to hospitas, cinics and heath services in genera. If you ive cose to these services you can reach a doctor in minutes rather than hours or days, so this improves emergency care and genera heath. There are aso benefits from easier access to sources of information such as radio and teevision which may be used to communicate information about heath to the genera pubic. For exampe, women iving in towns and cities are more ikey to be informed about famiy panning, which resuts in reduction in famiy size and ess frequent chidbirth, with consequent benefits to genera heath. However, urban ife can aso damage your heath. Poor environment, housing and iving conditions are the main reasons for poor heath in urban areas. Contamination of water sources can cause epidemics of waterborne disease. Cose proximity to other peope can make the spread of many types of infectious disease more ikey. The pouted air can aso cause respiratory disease and contribute to premature deaths among more vunerabe sections of the popuation such as oder peope and chidren. 14 of 18 Tuesday 22 March 2016

15 5.3 Impacts of urbanisation Food Popuation movements aso put pressure on food suppies and on food distribution. As peope migrate to the cities, they tend to use purchased food instead of their own crops and this makes them more vunerabe to changes in food prices. As the popuation grows and the demand for water and and increases, it becomes difficut to increase food production in a sustainabe way. The increase in urban demand, combined with a oss of agricutura and, means more pressure on rura peope to produce food for the growing number of urban peope. Furthermore, poution from urban areas can disrupt food suppy. For exampe, fisheries are often damaged by urban domestic wastes and iquid effuents from city-based industries. (Effuent is another word for wastewater that fows out from a source.) In severa Ethiopian cities, such as Bahir Dar, Hawassa, Bishoftu and others, untreated wastes are dumped into nearby akes, which can damage the fish stocks (Figure 5.9). Figure 5.9 Many peope iving in towns and cities near akes rey on oca fish for food, but this may be contaminated by urban waste. 15 of 18 Tuesday 22 March 2016

16 Summary of Study Session Economic and socia systems The process of urbanisation has positive as we as negative economic and socia changes. The positive effects incude economic deveopment, and education. However, urbanisation paces stresses on existing socia services and infrastructure. Crime, prostitution, drug abuse and street chidren are a negative effects of urbanisation. Aso there tends to be a ack of socia support for chidren in schoo and home by their hardworking, usuay poor, parents. Inadequate income, overcrowded housing and poor iving conditions create a fertie ground for the deveopment of vioence. Vioent crime is more visibe in the cities than in rura areas and it affects peope s everyday ife, their movements and the use of pubic transport. Crime in the city can create a sense of insecurity in its inhabitants. This unsafe feeing in city streets separates residentia areas into higher-income and ower-income groups, which reduces the sense of community and forms areas with dissimiar incomes, costs and security eves. In the next study session we wi ook at some of the ways in which these probems and chaenges can be addressed by considering the future demands for urban iving and by taking a panned approach to the deveopment of new urban areas. Summary of Study Session 5 In Study Session 5, you have earned that: 1 Urbanisation is a goba trend refecting the growing popuation of the word. The urban popuations of ess-deveoped countries are currenty increasing at a faster rate than those of more-deveoped countries. 2 Urbanisation resuts from a natura increase in the popuation and rura to urban migration. 3 Peope migrate to towns and cities in hope of gaining a better standard of iving. They are infuenced by pu factors that attract them to urban ife, and push factors that make them dissatisfied with rura iving. 4 Urban iving is associated with better empoyment and education opportunities, better heath, greater access to socia services and opportunities for socia and cutura activities. 5 Uncontroed migration and rapid urban growth are associated with increasing urban poverty and inequaity and rises in sum and squatter popuations. These peope usuay have inadequate water suppy and sanitation services. 6 Urbanisation affects the physica environment through the impacts of the number of peope, their activities and the increased demands on resources. 7 Urbanisation has negative consequences on heath due mainy to poution and overcrowded iving conditions. It can aso put added pressure on food suppy systems. 8 The pressures of urban iving may ead to crime and other consequences of socia deprivation. 16 of 18 Tuesday 22 March 2016

17 Sef-Assessment Questions (SAQs) for Study Session 5 Sef-Assessment Questions (SAQs) for Study Session 5 Now that you have competed this study session, you can assess how we you have achieved its Learning Outcomes by answering these questions. SAQ 5.1 (tests Learning Outcomes 5.1 and 5.3) Rewrite the paragraph beow using terms from the ist provided to fi the gaps. increase, mega-cities, peri-urban, rura to urban migration, sums. Urbanisation is an in the number of peope iving in towns and cities. The two causes of urbanisation are natura popuation increase and Urbanisation affects a sizes of settements from sma viages to towns to cities, eading up to the growth of which have more than ten miion peope. Rapid urbanisation often means that areas immediatey around a city grow more rapidy than urban centres and this can ead to deveopment of Answer Urbanisation is an increase in the number of peope iving in towns and cities. The two causes of urbanisation are natura popuation increase and rura to urban migration. Urbanisation affects a sizes of settements from sma viages to towns to cities, eading up to the growth of mega-cities which have more than ten miion peope. Rapid urbanisation often means that peri-urban areas immediatey around a city grow more rapidy than urban centres and this can ead to deveopment of sums. SAQ 5.2 (tests Learning Outcomes 5.1 and 5.3) Both push and pu factors drive the migration that eads to urbanisation. What is meant by the terms push and pu factors? In your answer you shoud state one push factor and one pu factor. Answer Pu factors in migration are factors that attract peope to urban areas, e.g. good empoyment opportunities in cities. Push factors in migration are factors that drive peope from the countryside, e.g. ack of sufficienty productive and to make a good iving. Other pu factors that encourage migration to urban areas incude better education opportunities, better heath care, improved access to socia services and opportunities for socia and cutura activities. Other push factors that drive peope away from rura areas are poor iving conditions, ack of paid empoyment, poor heath care, imited educationa and economic opportunities and environmenta changes. 17 of 18 Tuesday 22 March 2016

18 Sef-Assessment Questions (SAQs) for Study Session 5 SAQ 5.3 (tests Learning Outcome 5.2) Is urbanisation increasing faster in deveoped or deveoping countries? How does the rate of urbanisation in Ethiopia compare with other countries? Answer Urbanisation is occurring faster in deveoping countries, with Africa and Asia showing the highest rates of urbanisation. Ethiopia has an urban growth rate of 4% per year, which is among the highest in Africa and in the word, but it is starting from a ow proportion of peope iving in cities (18%). SAQ 5.4 (tests Learning Outcome 5.4) Do you think that urbanisation is a bad thing or a good thing? Justify your answer by giving two exampes of the impacts of urbanisation. Answer You coud answer either way you coud view urbanisation either as a good thing or as a bad thing. You might justify answering that urbanisation is a good thing because, first, it brings together economic and human resources that stimuate the economy through the deveopment of business, science, technoogy and industry and, second, it is more cost-effective and efficient to suppy faciities such as fresh water and eectricity to a concentrated popuation in a city. Other justifications you might have thought of incude the fact that the concentration of peope and resources eads to more readiy avaiabe education, heath, socia services and cutura activities in cities; urban iving is inked with higher eves of iteracy and education, better heath, ower fertiity and a onger ife expectancy; there are better communication and transport networks; and socia and cutura barriers can be overcome. You might justify your answer that urbanisation is a bad thing because, first, rapid and unpanned growth in urban areas is associated with inadequate housing, water and sanitation which eads to heath probems and, second, it is associated with adverse environmenta effects such as reduced water quaity, a buid-up of waste materias and poor air quaity. Other possibe reasons you might have thought of incude the ink between urbanisation and increasing urban poverty and inequaity; rises in sum and squatter popuations; adverse socia effects such as higher eves of crime and vioence; and a ack of socia support. As urbanisation has both positive and negative impacts, you might fee that you can t say that it is totay good or bad, but that is has mixed impacts and is both good and bad. 18 of 18 Tuesday 22 March 2016