Paper 2 · urbanisation trends
Which statement correctly distinguishes over-urbanisation from ordinary urbanisation?
AOver-urbanisation is simply another name used for any increase at all in the proportion of a population living in towns and cities.
BOver-urbanisation describes a fall in city population as residents migrate back to rural areas faster than infrastructure can be reduced to match.
COver-urbanisation occurs when urban population growth outpaces the growth of urban employment and infrastructure, unlike ordinary urbanisation.
DOver-urbanisation occurs only when a country's total population growth rate falls below zero for several consecutive calendar years.
Explanation: Over-urbanisation is where the rate of urban population growth exceeds the growth of urban employment and infrastructure, so cities grow faster than they can be adequately serviced, leading to problems such as unemployment and slum growth; ordinary urbanisation is simply the rising share of a population living in towns and cities, without this employment/infrastructure mismatch implied.
Derived from ZIMSEC Geography Paper 2, November 2003, Q5
