POPULATION MOBILITY AND URBAN AND RURAL-DEVELOPMENT IN MAINLAND CHINA

Population migration in mainland China has increased remarkably since the beginning of the economic reforms in 1978, affecting population structure and accelerating urbanization. Data from the 1990 census and statistics issued by public security departments reveal that de jure migration (i.e., when migrants register in their new place of abode) has remained comparatively stable since the beginning of the reforms, but de facto migration, especially from rural areas to the more prosperous cities, has increased substantially. Analysis of provincial-level data shows that areas with high inward migration rates include the three directly administered metropolitan areas of Beijing, Shanghai, and Tianjin and the more developed coastal provinces, as well as--more surprisingly--some remote border provinces, although the latter also have high outward migration rates. Increased population mobility has accelerated urbanization, to some extent breaking down the barrier between town and country and disrupting mainland China's pattern of industrialization without urbanization established in the 1960s and 1970s.