Lall, Lozano-Gracia, and Yepes
Box 2.1
City Class Definition and Distribution This chapter categorizes municipalities into seven classes, according to their urban population figures (derived from the 2005 Census). Under this categorization, the city of Bogotá constitutes a class of its own, with over 7 million inhabitants. The remaining six classes are as follows: 1. Urban population ≥ 1 million and < 4 million 2. Urban population ≥ 500,000 and < 1 million 3. Urban population ≥ 100,000 and < 500,000 4. Urban population ≥ 50,000 and < 100,000 5. Urban population ≥ 20,000 and < 50,000 6. Urban population < 20,000 The absolute size of Colombian cities has increased across the urban portfolio. Since the 1950s, the relative rank of Colombia’s largest cities has remained stable. Bogotá and Class 1 cities, such as Medellín, Barranquilla, and Cali continue to be the country’s most-populous cities. However, the number of cities with populations over 100,000 has increased substantially. As the figure 2B.1 shows, the number of cities with more than 100,000 inhabitants rose from 9 in 1951 to 33 in 2006. The growing number of cities and the fact that approximately 75 percent of Colombia’s population lives in cities render an urban lens that is essential for policy analysis. Figure 2B.1 The Evolution of Cities with More Than 100,000 Inhabitants 40 number of cities with over 100,000 inhabitants
35 30 25 20 15 10 5
year Source: DANE Census.
05 20
85 19
73 19
64 19
51
0
19
22