Future of Metropolises in Developing Asia and Africa

Abstract

This chapter discusses the future of metropolises in the developing Asia and Africa in the context of five themes: (1) urbanization in developing countries ; (2) metropolitanization ; (3) nodes in the national urban system ; (4) nodes in the world urban system ; and (5) developing methodology and future research challenges . First, the metropolises of developing Asia and Africa are experiencing rapid urbanization , giving rise to an urban population explosion. Second, as the metropolitan area expands, the spatial pattern gradually changes from a unipolar structure, where the city center is the urban core, toward a multipolar structure, which incorporates peripheral areas. Third, when considering the country’s economic growth as a whole, concentrating economic functions in the capital appears to be the most efficient strategy in the short term. However, excessive concentration in the capital can widen the gap between the capital and local areas, which in turn affects regional cities through a straw effect. Fourth, the top cities around the world today that serve as the nodes in the world urban system are now referred to as world cities. And fifth, remote sensing and GIS are among the emerging geospatial tools and techniques today for advancing urban studies in the geographical context.