What is different about urbanization in rich and poor countries? Cities in Brazil, China, India and the United States

Abstract

We acknowledge support from the Taubman Center for State and Local Government. Chauvin acknowledges support from the Center for International Development at Harvard University. The views expressed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Bureau of Economic Research. At least one co-author has disclosed a financial relationship of potential relevance for this research. Further information is available online at http://www.nber.org/papers/w22002.ack NBER working papers are circulated for discussion and comment purposes. They have not been peerreviewed or been subject to the review by the NBER Board of Directors that accompanies official NBER publications.

Human Capital and Agglomeration Economies in Urban Development

“…This sector is likely to be subject to agglomeration economies (Tanaka and Hashiguchi ; Duranton ). In this context, the positive effects of density may not be as strong as they are in developed countries for reasons I briefly discuss below (Chauvin et al ).…”

Property Rights Reform to Support China's Rural–Urban Integration: Village‐Level Evidence from the Chengdu Experiment

“…The ability of cities to capitalize on positive externalities from skills agglomeration and spatial proximity has historically made urbanization a driver of economic growth (Glaeser, ). Yet the global surge in urbanization has called attention to the need for policies to ensure that urban growth is sustainable and keeps cities economically competitive (Chauvin et al ., ). In China, policy‐induced imperfections in land and labour markets have long been recognized as affecting the amount and nature of land conversion and rural–urban migration in ways that may be unsustainable, widen rural–urban inequality, and reduce China's competitiveness (Wen and Xiong, ).…”

Related variety and employment growth: a spatial dynamic model for Brazilian microregions

“…The main results of this study provide evidence of the regional characteristics that induce local growth. Current studies on this theme are mostly concentrated in American and European regions and there are few evaluations for developing countries, although they present a different growth dynamic (Chauvin, Glaeser, Ma, & Tobio, ). Therefore, this analysis of Brazilian microregions can contribute to the understanding of agglomeration economies in the context of a developing country, characterized by high disparities in regional development and recent growth in urban areas (Silveira‐Neto & Azzoni, ).…”