The line graph represents the changes in the proportion of city inhabitants in four countries (Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, Ecuador) over a 50-year period ending in 2020, with predictions for the next two decades. Overall, it is clear that urban populations have grown significantly, albeit at different startings in each country, resulting in remarkably similar ending percentages. The forecast predicts the slower rise in the coming years.
At the beginning of the period, the two countries with the smallest city populations were Uruguay and Ecuador, where around one-fifth lived in the citiy areas. Half a century of upward and steady growth showed that by 2020 the propotions had risen to around 95% in Uruguay, making it the fastest country on the chart, and to just under 70% in Ecuador.
In Brazil, half of the population lived in the urban territories in 1970, in 2020 the number went up to a little under 90%, despite falling by around 5% during the 1990s. Out of four nations Argentina maintained the highest percentage of urban population until it was surpassed by Uruguay shortly before 2020. At the start of the period, around 70% of Argentinians lived in the cities, more than three times the proportion seen in both Uruguay and Ecuador. Since then, growth has been slower, eventually topping 90% in 2020.
Over the next twenty years, growth is expected to slow in the countries where cities are currently home to nine out of ten individuals, rising by no more than 3%. However, Ecuador percentage is expected to reach 80% by 2040.