Band 6+: In recent years some countries have experienced very rapid economic development. This has resulted in much higher standards of living in urban areas but not in the countryside. This situation may bring some problems for the country as a whole. What are these problems? How might they be reduced?

It is a fact that economic growth improves countries’ living standards. This type of development generally is seen in urban areas which leads people to move there. However, this situation brought some problems for the country which will be our subject for discussion.

Progress of trade and distribution of goods and services not only is profitable for the country’s economy (To commence with, not only is the progress of trade and distribution of goods and services profitable for the country’s economy), but it also has an impact on manufacturing and the newly created workplaces which is appealing for the people who live in the countryside. In addition to this, salaries are much higher and housing in urban areas gives accessibility to transportation, shops, and entertainment. Furthermore, this pushes people to move to urban areas and this action is followed up by major problems, like overpopulation. Moreover, Crowded cities create a demand for goods and services, and if they are not supplied, riots and protests might appear. Besides that (Apart from that), the decreased population in the countryside might cause a lack of food as these people are known for their farming abilities, so in the worst-case scenario starvation could arise.

However, if the country’s government is smart enough, these types of problems are easy to be dealt with. Firstly, economic growth shouldn’t be used for development in urban areas in terms of creating workplaces, for instance, investment in the countryside most likely will boost living standards there. Moreover, if the money starts flowing into rural areas, infrastructure might get modernized. One of the reasons for relocation is education because high-end schools and universities are located in urban areas, so building these types of facilities would probably make the countryside more attractive for the locals, and as a result, identified problems might be reduced.

To draw a conclusion, economic expansion has its benefits and side effects as a result of overpopulation in urban cities, but it is possible to cope with those problems by investing more money in rural areas, creating schools and universities, and last not but least (consequently) reconstruction and upgrade of a workplace in order to gain more financial support from it.