Critical Reflection on Urbanization

CRITICAL REFLECTION ON URBANIZATION 1
CRITICAL REFLECTION ON URBANIZATION
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CRITICAL REFLECTION ON URBANIZATION 2
CRITICAL REFLECTION ON URBANIZATION
Urbanization is a term used to define the transformation from a rural to an urban setup.
This transformation can be viewed in two main ways; change occurring in an area and the
movement of people (Tacoli, et al., 2015). In change occurring in an area, urbanization can be
viewed as the transformation of a rural area into an urban area through development.
Infrastructure (which is characteristic of urban areas) is developed in an originally rural area.
Such development eventually transforms the rural area into an urban area.
In movement of people, urbanization is viewed as the process by which people move
from rural areas to urban areas (rural-urban migration). This is regarded as urbanization since an
increase in the number of people in an urban area necessitates an increase in the infrastructure of
the urban area in question. This increase in infrastructural development is an aspect of
urbanization.
Urban setups present opportunities for better lives, which attracts people from rural areas.
The opportunities available in urban areas include employment, proper health care and better
education. The potential economic returns associated with urban areas also attracts investment
towards urbanization (Cohen, 2015). This investment can be public, private or public-private
joint. Investment-induced urbanization come in the form of planned and smart cities.
It is projected that, as a result of pursuit of opportunities combined with investment-
induced urbanization, the global urban population will rise from 55% in 2018 to 68% in 2050
(United Nations, 2018). A majority of this increase in urban population will be in Africa and
Asia. Whereas urbanization does provide opportunities and economic gains, it also presents a
challenge of sustainability (Brenner & Schmid, 2015). Rise in resource exploitation and
population growth have put stress on nature. This implies that the available natural resources are
not able to sufficiently meet the global population requirements. Due to this, a sustainable
approach has to be adopted to ensure that global population needs are met without
overexploitation. The sustainable approach extends to urbanization. This paper will look at
sustainable urbanization in terms of Housing, Social Amenities, Transport and Urban Areas
Management.
The housing provided in urban areas should meet three key sustainability criteria;
decency, affordability, and environment friendliness. With regards to decency, there is need to
ensure that slums and homelessness are done away with. The average minimum wage in an
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