Cecilia Tacoli (ed). The Earthscan Reader in Rural-Urban Linkages. London / Sterling, VA: Earthscan. 329 pages. Hardbound. Indian Rs 995.00.

Abstract

The linkages between ‘rural’ and ‘urban’ locations, people, and activities contribute significantly to livelihoods and act as engines of economic, social, and cultural transformation. There is an increased interest among officials and policy-makers to better understand the opportunities and constraints that these linkages offer. Divided into five parts, the fifteen chapters, of this book bring special attention to the impact of rural-urban linkages on different aspects of sustainable development. Chapter 1 presents an analysis of recent census data, with special attention to small urban centres. David Satterthwaite argus that the rural and urban divide misses the extent to which rural households rely on urban incomes, while many urban households in low-income nations rely on rural resources and a reciprocal relationship with rural households. There is a need to forget this divide and see all settlements as being within a continuum with regard to both their population size and the extent of their non-agricultural economic base.