Urbanization is speeding up throughout China, with half the 1.3 billion Chinese expected to live in cities in 2010.

Every year, about 13 million rural people flood into China's cities, equivalent to the current population of Beijing, Vice-Minister of Construction Qiu Baoxing told the Fudan University International Urban Forum over the weekend.

To accommodate this new urban population, the country needs a huge amount of resources, currently accounting for 40 per cent of the world's total annual cement consumption and 30 per cent of the annual steel consumption.

In addition, current construction projects account for around 30 per cent of the global total, said the vice-minister. He estimated that it would be another 30 years before the initial phase of China's urbanization is completed.

"Besides resource consumption, urbanization brings a lot of problems such as the widening wealth gap between urban and rural areas, environmental damage, the lack of social security for migrant workers and heavy pressure on transport networks," said Shan Wenhui, director of the Centre for Urban Studies at Fudan University.

Shi Nan, secretary-general of the Urban Planning Society of China, pointed out that it would be possible for the country to accommodate 50 per cent of its population in cities in 2010, since currently about 40 per cent of the population already lived in urban areas.

He said the government needed to seek solutions for swelling urban populations and shrinking resources.

Currently, three densely urbanized regions have formed along China's coast the Pearl River Delta, the Yangtze River Delta and the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region.

New urban systems are also taking shape in the country's smaller cities and towns, due to economic development and the absorption of surplus rural labour.

Economic growth is the force driving this rapid urbanization. But other factors also attract farmers to the cities, Qiu explained, pointing to the development of transport networks and educational opportunities.



随着我国城市化的进程加快，预计到2010年，全国将有一半人口居住在城镇。

在上周末举行的“复旦大学国际城市化论坛”上，建设部副部长仇保兴说，我国每年约有1300万的农村人口涌向城市，这个数字相当于现在整个北京市的人口。

为了解决城市新增人口的住房问题，我国需要大量的资源和原材料，目前我国的水泥年消费量占全世界消费总量的40％，钢材年消费量占世界消费总量的30％。

此外，据仇部长介绍，目前我国的建设项目总数占全世界在建项目的30％左右。据估计，我国城市化进程第一阶段还将持续30年。

复旦大学城市化研究中心主任单文慧说：“除了资源消耗，城市化还带来了很多其它的问题，其中包括城乡居民贫富差距不断扩大、环境破坏、民工缺乏社会保障以及公交系统压力过大等问题。”

中国城市规划学会秘书长石楠说，目前全国已有40％的人口居住在城镇地区，因此，到2010年城镇地区容纳全国50％的人口应该不成问题。

他说，G0vern.ment必须找到可行的办法来解决城市人口不断增加和资源不断减少的问题。

目前，珠江三角洲、长江三角洲和京津唐地区已成为我国三大城市密集区。

随着我国城镇经济的发展和吸纳农村剩余劳动力能力的增强，一些中小城镇已开始形成新的城镇体系。

经济增长是我国城市化进程加快的主要动力。此外，据仇部长介绍，城市公交系统的发展和受教育机会的增多也是吸引农民进城的重要因素。