| Abstract: | A certain measure of agreement is found between rates of urbanization and industrialization, with the agreement far greater with total growth of urban population than with the concentration of urban population in big cities. This finding is thought to be significant support for those who contend that limitations on big-city growth are desirable and will not have an adverse effect on industrial development. Migration from the countryside continues to be the main source of urbanization, although its significance has greatly declined as natural increase of the urban population has risen. Migration in general is thought to be desirable because it helps redistribute the able-bodied population between the agricultural and industrial sectors of the economy and provides a channel for social mobility of rural youth. However, the magnitude and composition of rural-urban migration in some regions is having an adverse effect on the economy and requires more effective regulation. |
