Urbanization of Thailand

Urbanization


When examining urban settlements, geographers study site, evolution and growth, and classification of villages, towns, and cities.  Geographers study site, focusing on the physical attributes in order to discover why settlements are located where they are.  Physical features such as rivers, lakes, and bays contribute to larger concentrations of cities, while settlements around deserts are fewer.  Economic, political, and social aspects contribute to the study of evolution and growth, with topics ranging from migration to job development.  As cities develop through globalization, more agriculturally focused cities tend to urbanize, shifting the job focus from farming to industrialization.  Along with shifting the general job market, development also shifts the classification of the settlement itself.  As settlements urbanize, they evolve from rural or urban, which tend to have small, dispersed populations, to cities, which have a larger concentration of people.  This causes a shift in culture as the citizens become more involved in political issues and live a more commercialized lifestyle.  

Population of Bangkok Region 1947-2010

Bangkok is the capital of Thailand and its largest city, with one in ten Thais residing there.  The city is located near the Gulf of Thailand and the river Chao Phraya.  The land around the waterways was originally chosen by early settlers due to its high fertility and abundance of fish.  The Chao Phraya also serves as a main mean of transportation, with over 50,000 people using the river ferries each day.  Thailand is the world’s 51^st largest country with a total population of 67, 091, 089 and 5, 104, 476 living in Bangkok.  Over 300,000 Thai have settled in North America and over 10,000 Americans live in Thailand.  Thailand has a moderate inflow of immigration.  75% of the population in Thailand are Thai, 14% are Chinese, and 11% are classified as other.  Since 2000, Bangkok has experienced annual population growth 2.5 times the rate of growth from 1980 to 2000.  As the city continues to develop, most of the urbanization occurred in suburban areas, characteristic of the urbanization process of both developing and developed countries.  

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Globalization

 Globalization Arguments

Globalization has both positive and negative aspects.  Supporters of globalization defend the process as a logical expression of capitalism, able to increase efficiency and spread new technology and ideas through the removal of trade barriers.  They argue that the resulting free flow of capital will aid in the enhancement of the global economy and raise the economic status of the world's poorer countries.  Critics of globalization, however, claim that it only serves to create greater inequalities.  Free-market economies rise at the expense of local, indigenous economies, with critics citing the success of core, developed countries without the free-market economic model to argue against its necessity. 

While globalization can result in the loss of indigenous culture, the result is an increase in a country's wealth and success.  With the success of economy and trade comes negative aspects, such as the sex trade, prostitution, and pornography.  This balance between the positive and negative effects of globalization can be seen in Thailand.  The economy was boosted in 2011 when Japan flooded central Thailand with the international automobile and consumer electronics industries.  As a result, the region became a highly global manufacturing center, rapidly exponentializing the country's economic growth.

Thailand automobile manufacturer

Manufacturing, agriculture, and tourism are staples in the country's free-market economy, all effects of globalization.  Despite this, this region of Southeast Asia remains one of the sites of some of the world's most extensive sexual exploitation.  One of the biggest businesses in Thailand is commercial sex.  Although prostitution is technically illegal, it is still a major source of corruption due to its massive scope.  These girls and boys are usually trafficked from the poorer parts of the region, which is often connected with the drug trade.  Because of this, HIV and AIDS are becoming a large problem and the government is currently focusing on a public health campaign promoting condom use.


Rowntree, Lester. Globalization and Diversity: Geography of a Changing World. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall, 2014. Print.


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