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Home»GSDRC Publications»Costs of Urbanisation

Costs of Urbanisation

Helpdesk Report
  • Huma Haider
November 2009

Question

Please identify literature on the economic costs associated with rapid urbanisation (with a focus on developing countries, in particular South Asia and the rest of Asia). Costs of particular interest are loss of productivity; environmental costs; and security-related costs.

Summary

Half of the global population now lives in cities. Urban growth is occurring most rapidly in the developing world, where cities gain an average of 5 million residents every month (UN-HABITAT, 2008). Urbanisation processes have been prevalent in Asia and while they have raised living standards in many countries, they have also produced other economic, social and environmental costs. This helpdesk research report aims to outline some of these costs, focusing primarily on South Asia – and in particular, Bangladesh. This is of a descriptive nature as there is a dearth of quantitative estimates. The literature and expert comments stress the difficulty in determining clear estimates of costs. The main issues highlighted in the literature include:

  • poor productivity and market inefficiencies
  • environmental and health issues and poor living conditions
  • economic and social costs of crime and insecurity.
file type icon See Full Report [PDF]

Enquirer:

  • DFID Bangladesh

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