Abstract
Urbanization has been a necessary condition for development. However, rapid urbanization in developing countries has often been shifting poverty to cities.
Urbanization of poverty is a complex process, which includes various interactions between poverty and growth of urban population. It also creates many important qualitative changes resulting from different nature of rural and urban lifestyles and livelihood strategies. “Modern” poverty is a process of increased dynamics, typically with a high susceptibility to risks.
The urban poor may have more opportunities (to find a job, for example) but often at the expense of harsh real-life conditions and within an increasingly insecure environment.