The trend of migration to cities has led to the emergence of megacities, with nearly half of the world’s population living in cities. Megacities face problems such as sanitation, crime, poverty, and slums. Developing a global community may help solve these issues.
The last century has shown us quite clearly that migrations to cities are the trend of the present and the future. In 1800, it was estimated that less than 3% of the world’s population called cities home. By the early 21st century, this number had exploded, with some experts estimating that nearly half of all people lived in cities. This massive migration from the country to the city led to the emergence of the megacity, a term typically used to describe a city with a population of over 10,000,000.
Cities have been a part of human civilization for thousands of years, originating from early tribes as symbols of power, commerce, and gathering places for cultural and religious events. As society has moved away from agricultural activities that require large amounts of land, the development and growth of cities has naturally increased dramatically. While there are many factors that have led to the development of megacities, the reliance on technology, population growth, and economic development of poor nations are often described as major contributing factors to their rise.
It is somewhat difficult to obtain an accurate count of city dwellers, as population censuses are somewhat inaccurate in estimating them. In addition, some controversy arises among experts as to which outlying areas of the city, such as the suburbs, should be included in the population count. Despite these difficulties, it is widely believed that at least 26 cities meet the 10 million population criteria, with many more cities poised to join. Tokyo, with over 35 million inhabitants, is currently the largest megacity.
Megacities allow convenience and good opportunities to find work, but are full of complicated problems. Many of the traditional cities, like New York and Los Angeles, weren’t built to house that many citizens and face countless problems of how and where to expand to accommodate their growing population. Sanitation, crime and poverty are serious problems facing a megacity and few have found sufficient ways to tackle these problems. But perhaps the greatest challenge facing a megacity is the development of slums or slums along the edge of the developed city.
The modern megacity is hardly limited to rich countries like the United States; in fact they are more common in countries where there is a tremendous economic divide between rich and poor. As a result, people who desperately need a job that is only available in the city cannot afford to live there and are forced to live in unsafe and cheap slums. Slums are typically hotbeds of crime and severe sanitation problems, leading to extremely high death rates and the danger of rapidly spreading disease. Since many slums are also built illegally, they leave the residents in great danger from natural disasters such as earthquakes or floods.
The megacity, according to most population experts, is here to stay despite its problems. Optimists hope that developing a global community will help dispel some of the problems inherent in a megacity by boosting the economy of developing nations. Yet the megacity has long been a favorite setting for grim works of fiction depicting a tightly controlled and environmentally devastating future for the city’s inhabitants. By the middle of the 21st century, it is estimated that three out of five people will be living in cities; clearly the time to find solutions to the problems of a megacity is now.
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