Why do more than half the world's people now live in urban areas?
Global patterns and rates of urbanisation; the difference between megacities and world cities and their distribution; and the causes of urbanisation, including rural-to-urban migration (push and pull factors) and natural increase.
A focused answer to OCR GCSE Geography B (J384) Urban Futures on global urbanisation, the difference between megacities and world cities, their distribution, and the causes of urbanisation through migration and natural increase.
Reviewed by: AI editorial process; not yet individually human-reviewed
Have a quick question? Jump to the Q&A page
Jump to a section
What this dot point is asking
This is OCR GCSE Geography B (J384) Component 2, People and Society, the opening enquiry of Urban Futures: "Why do more than half the world's people now live in urban areas?" OCR expects you to describe global patterns and rates of urbanisation, explain the difference between megacities and world cities and where they are found, and explain the causes of urbanisation: rural-to-urban migration (push and pull factors) and natural increase.
Patterns and rates of urbanisation
The rate of urbanisation varies with development. Advanced Countries (ACs) urbanised early, during their industrial revolutions, so they are already highly urban and their rates are now slow or stable (some even see counter-urbanisation as people move out to the countryside). Lower Income Developing Countries (LIDCs) and Emerging Developing Countries (EDCs) are urbanising fastest now, with cities growing very rapidly.
Megacities and world cities
OCR distinguishes two important types of large city, and they are not the same thing.
The causes of urbanisation
Two processes drive urbanisation, and the strongest answers use both.
- Rural-to-urban migration. People move from the countryside to the city. Push factors drive them away from rural areas: poverty, a lack of jobs, poor services (few schools and clinics), and crop failure or drought. Pull factors attract them to cities: more and better-paid jobs, better services and education, and the hope of a higher quality of life. Often the reality falls short of the hope, but the perception drives the move.
- Natural increase. Cities also grow from within. Migrants are often young adults of working and child-bearing age, so the city has a high birth rate and a low death rate, and the population grows naturally, independent of further migration.
Together, migration and natural increase explain why cities in LIDCs and EDCs grow so fast.
Try this
Q1. Define the term urbanisation. [2 marks]
- Cue. The increase in the proportion of people living in urban areas compared with rural areas.
Q2. Explain the difference between a megacity and a world city. [3 marks]
- Cue. A megacity has over 10 million people (about size); a world city has global influence in finance, culture and decision-making (about importance).
Exam-style practice questions
Practice questions written in the style of OCR exam questions on this dot point, with worked answer explainers. The year tag is the paper they imitate, not the source.
OCR 20184 marksExplain two reasons why people move from rural areas to cities in LIDCs. (Component 2)Show worked answer →
A 4-mark "Explain" question assessing AO1 and AO2 of migration causes. Markers reward developed push and pull factors.
Award credit for any two, each developed: push factors include poverty and a lack of jobs in the countryside, poor services (few schools or clinics), and crop failure or drought that makes farming unreliable, so people leave to survive. Pull factors include the perception of more and better-paid jobs in the city, better services such as healthcare and education, and the hope of a higher quality of life. Top answers develop the factor into a consequence (crop failure, so no income, so people move) rather than just listing it.
OCR 20216 marksExplain why urbanisation is happening faster in LIDCs and EDCs than in ACs. (Component 2)Show worked answer →
A 6-mark question marked by levels of response, assessing AO1 and AO2.
Strong answers explain that ACs urbanised long ago during their industrial revolutions, so they are already highly urban and their rates are now slow or stable. LIDCs and EDCs are urbanising rapidly now because of strong rural-to-urban migration (push factors such as rural poverty and crop failure, pull factors such as city jobs and services) combined with high natural increase (a young population with high birth rates means cities grow from within as well). They may add that rapid industrialisation and the growth of manufacturing and services concentrate jobs in cities. A good answer links both migration and natural increase to the faster rate and contrasts it with the already-urban ACs. Markers reward the comparison and the two combined causes.
Related dot points
- A case study of a city in an LIDC or EDC: its context and growth; the social, economic and environmental consequences of rapid urbanisation, including squatter settlements and the informal economy; and top-down and bottom-up strategies to manage the challenges.
A focused answer to OCR GCSE Geography B (J384) Urban Futures on a city in an LIDC or EDC, covering its growth, the social, economic and environmental consequences including squatter settlements and the informal economy, and top-down and bottom-up management.
- What makes a city sustainable; the challenges and opportunities for a city in an AC; and strategies for sustainable urban living, including transport, housing, energy, water and waste, that improve quality of life while reducing environmental impact.
A focused answer to OCR GCSE Geography B (J384) Urban Futures on sustainable cities, covering what makes a city sustainable, the challenges and opportunities for a city in an AC, and strategies for sustainable urban living.
- What development means and why it is hard to define; the economic, social and combined measures of development (GNI per capita, HDI, the Gender Inequality Index); and the limitations of single indicators.
A focused answer to OCR GCSE Geography B (J384) Dynamic Development on what development means and how it is measured, covering GNI per capita, the HDI, the Gender Inequality Index, and the limitations of single indicators.
- The physical, historical, economic and political causes of uneven development; the consequences for people and the environment; and contrasting theories of development, including Rostow's model and dependency theory.
A focused answer to OCR GCSE Geography B (J384) Dynamic Development on uneven development, covering the physical, historical, economic and political causes, the consequences for people, and Rostow's model and dependency theory.
- A case study of one LIDC: its context, recent development and barriers; progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals; and strategies to reduce the development gap, including aid, debt relief, trade and investment, evaluated as top-down or bottom-up.
A focused answer to OCR GCSE Geography B (J384) Dynamic Development on an LIDC case study, covering its context, barriers and recent development, the Sustainable Development Goals, and strategies to reduce the development gap including aid and debt relief.
Sources & how we know this
- OCR GCSE (9-1) Geography B (J384) specification — OCR (2016)