ABSTRACT
Urbanization is the growth in the proportion of the population living in urban areas. The world has experienced unprecedented urban growth in the last and current centuries. In 1800, only 3 per cent of the world’s population lived in urban areas. The world population began to increase substantially after 1900. The percentage of urban population increased 14 per cent and 47 per cent in 1900 and 2000 respectively. For the first time in history, more than half of the world population is living in urban areas in 2008 (Laski and Schellekens, 2007). It is also estimated that by 2030, up to 5 billion people will live in towns and cities.
