Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Changing Trends
in Urbanisation
What is urbanisation?
Process whereby the proportion of people living in
urban areas increases
2,000km
More jobs
Fewer jobs
Higher-paying jobs
Lower-paying jobs
Less housing
Better housing
Poorer housing
Better infrastructure
Poorer infrastructure
More accessible
Less accessible
More entertainment
Less entertainment
Country
% urban
population
Country
% urban
population
Anguilla
100
Jamaica
52
Antigua
37
Martinique
95
Bahamas
89
Montserrat
13
Barbados
50
Netherlands Antilles
69
Belize
N.A.
Puerto Rico
94
Cayman Islands
100
St. Kitts
33
Cuba
76
St. Lucia
30
Dominica
71
St Vincent
55
Dominican Republic
64
Suriname
74
Grenada
39
74
Guadeloupe
100
Turks
45
Guyana
36
US Virgin Islands
93
Haiti
36
61
Year
The government could improve the road links between the rural
areas and the urban areas
This would facilitate the transportation of agricultural products
to the urban ports for export, thereby enhancing the profitability
of farming and raising rural incomes
The government could also develop social amenities to
improve the quality of life in the rural areas
3. Offer incentives
Migration
Movement of people from one place to another
Temporary migration is movement that occurs on a
seasonal or daily basis
Permanent migration involves a change of residence
Internal migration
Movement of people within a country
Includes rural-urban migration and seasonal migration
Does not affect the total population of the country, but
changes the distribution of the population
Rural-urban migration
Common in developing countries
Usually involves the younger people
They are attracted by the job opportunities and the
better amenities in the urban areas
Can cause depopulation of the rural areas and a rapid
increase in the urban population
Often results in squatter settlements or shanty towns
characterised by poor living conditions
Another common problem is increased crime,
stemming from rising unemployment of the unskilled
rural migrants
Seasonal migration
Often for agricultural reasons
E.g. people moving to an area temporarily to work as
extra labour during harvest time
International migration
Movement of people across international boundaries
Affects the total population of a country
Many people move voluntarily, i.e. of their own free will
When people are forced to move due to social, political
or economic factors, it is called involuntary migration
E.g. prolonged droughts in Sahel, Africa, had forced
millions to flee Ethiopia to avoid starvation
Year
Number of migrants
1995
96,788
1996
116,801
1997
105,299
1998
75,521
1999
61,683
2000
88,198
2001
103,546
2002
96,489
2003
68,815
2004
88,921
Migration in Guyana
2,000km
Causes of emigration
80% of the country is forested and sparsely populated
Lack of good jobs and opportunities for social
advancement
High levels of unemployment and under-employment
Agriculture, which contributes more than 50% of the
GDP, is the main employer
Natural hazards such as floods are a constant threat to
the agricultural sector
Little potential for the development of sun, sea and
sand tourism
Bauxite, gold and diamonds are the most important
minerals to be mined
The future
The economy is showing signs of rebounding
Growth has been based on the expansion of the
agricultural and mining sectors
Contributing factors include a more realistic exchange
rate, fairly low inflation, and the continued support of
international organisations
The rate of negative net migration is decreasing
Negative net migration in 2006 was less than -8 per
1,000 persons, compared to a high of -13.6 per 1,000
persons in 1990