Definitions of "rural" and "urban" and understandings of economic transformation: Evidence from Tanzania.

ABSTRACT: Designing effective policies for economic development often entails categorizing populations by their rural or urban status. Yet there exists no universal definition of what constitutes an "urban" area, and countries alternately apply criteria related to settlement size, population density, or economic advancement. In this study, we explore the implications of applying different urban definitions, focusing on Tanzania for illustrative purposes. Toward this end, we refer to nationally representative household survey data from Tanzania, collected in 2008 and 2014, and categorize households as urban or rural using seven distinct definitions. These are based on official administrative categorizations, population densities, daytime and nighttime satellite imagery, local economic characteristics

SUBMITTER: Wineman A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7582017 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature