Urbanization
January 17, 2012
The urban population in China has outgrown that of rural areas for the first time, the country's National Bureau of Statistics said Tuesday.
Urban dwellers now represent 51.27 percent of China's population of around 1.35 billion. In 1982, only one in five Chinese lived in cities. By 1990, the number had grown to 26 percent, and by 2000 it had jumped to 36 percent.
"Urbanization is an irreversible process and in the next 20 years China's urban population will reach 75 percent of the total population," Li Jianmin, head of the Institute of Population and Development Research at Nankai University, told news agency Agence France-Presse.
"This will have a huge impact on China’s environment, and on social and economic development."
By comparison, around 30 percent of Indians live in cities, whilst some 82 percent of Americans are urbanites.
Most rural migrants move to cities in search of better pay and employment opportunities. Urbanization has underpinned China's growth in recent decades, but it’s thought the movement of people to cities is slowing.
Analysts say this is likely to affect labor supply, which in turn could lead to wage hikes. Per capita urban disposable income rose 14 percent to 21,810 yuan ($3,500) in 2011 from the year previous. Per capita rural income stands at around 7,000 yuan.
Major cities such as Beijing and Shanghai have already indicated they are seeking to contain population increases, which put a strain on amenities, resources, transportation and the environment.
Author: Darren Mara (Reuters, AFP)
Editor: Anne Thomas