HSC GEOGRAPHY: URBAN PLACES
MEGA CITIES IN DEVELOPING
COUNTRIES
Overview of this unit of work
 the
nature, character and spatial distribution of mega
cities in the developing world
 the challenges of living in mega cities such as housing,
traffic infrastructure, water and power supplies,
sanitation services, employment, and other social and
health issues
 the responses to these challenges such as self-help
projects, community self-government, cooperation from
NGOs, urban protest and the operations of informal
economies
Overview of this unit of work
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This unit requires you to investigate geographically the
ways individuals, communities and government and nongovernment organisations are managing the challenges
of living in mega cities in the developing world.
Investigation from a variety of primary and secondary
sources, including case studies and illustrative examples,
should enable you to explain and evaluate traditional
and innovative urban management strategies employed
to protect and improve the quality of life for the
majority of urban dwellers in the developing world.
What are Mega Cities?
 Mega
Cities are defined as very large
agglomerations of at least 8 million inhabitants
 The
UN lists 22 mega cities of the developing
world: Mexico City, Lima, Buenos Aires, Rio de
Janeiro, São Paulo, Lagos, Cairo, Istanbul, Tehran,
Karachi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Delhi, Calcutta,
Bangkok, Dhaka, Shanghai, Tianjin, Beijing, Seoul,
Metro Manilla, Jakarta
Spatial Distribution of Mega Cities
Mega Cities
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In 2008, the world reached an invisible but momentous milestone: For
the first time in history, more than half its human population, 3.3 billion
people, will be living in urban areas. By 2030, this is expected to swell
to almost 5 billion.
Mega cities have developed rapidly and recently particularly since
1950 in the developing world.
Generally the population of Mega cities grows at a faster rate than the
population of the nation due to rural urban migration and high rates of
natural increase from young child-bearing age population
Rural-Urban Migration
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Rural-urban migration:
PUSH factors are the reasons people leave an area = transformed rural
areas – reduced work opportunities in rural areas due to: environmental
degradation/ depleted resources/mechanisation/ landlessness/lack of
education and health services/ poverty/ agribusiness/ commercialisation
(cash crops)
PULL factors are the reasons why people want to move to an area =
relatively more work in the cities/cultural & entertainment opportunities in
the city/more choice of leisure activities bette services, safer environment,
political stability
Rural-Urban Migration
Rural-Urban Migration
Task:
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Rural-Urban Migration in Brazil Decision Making
Activity
Class wiki
 rural-urban-migration.wikispaces.com