Migration of people from rural to urban areas is usually only seen from the perspective of urban areas as a potential problem. Actually, from a village perspective, urbanization has both positive and negative impacts.
By
SIWI NUGRAHENI
·5 minutes read
The traditional homecoming, or mudik, is a clear proof of urbanization. The term homecoming arises because residents do not live in their ancestral hometowns. As Idul Fitri arrives, the discourse is shifting to a question of how to overcome traffic jams on the way to the hometowns. It is estimated that 85 million people will make homebound trips for the holiday festivities this year.
During the return journey, it is not only traffic congestion that will concern the government. The policymakers in the city are also worried about the increasing number of people travelling to the city, as homecoming holiday visitors often bring relatives or friends back to the city with them.
With mediocre skills, the newcomers from the village are feared to create new problems in the city, such as unemployment and the expansion of slum settlements.
Migration of people from rural to urban areas is usually only seen from the perspective of urban areas as a potential problem. Actually, from a village perspective, urbanization has both positive and negative impacts.
Improve the welfare of citizens
Urbanization occurs because there are push and pull factors. The push factor for urbanization is unfavorable conditions in the village, while the pull factor is the situation in the city, which promises a better life for the villagers.
Limited job opportunities and inadequate income in the village are juxtaposed with the hope of finding high-paid jobs in the city.
Perceptions of push and pull factors are usually viewed from an economic perspective. Limited job opportunities and inadequate income in the village are juxtaposed with the hope of finding high-paid jobs in the city.
If these expectations are met, the migrants usually do not forget their family and relatives in the village. When they go home, their earnings from working in the city also flow to the village.
Many of them even regularly send money to their families or relatives who still live in the village. One of the positive aspects of urbanization is that it helps improve the welfare of villagers in various ways, including the increased distribution of funds to the village.
Not all villagers, who migrate to cities, will stay for good. Farmers who have just completed the planting period often go to the city to seek additional income until the harvest season. They usually enter the informal sector.
A food seller in our residential area, for example, is a farmer. For such a migrant, working in the city is kind of job diversification.
The loss of village potential
Urbanization also has a negative impact on rural areas. The people who migrate to the city are mostly of productive age population so that their migration reduces human resource potential in rural areas.
Several of our partner farmers in community service activities have similar complaints, namely the shortage of labor. As they get older, they worry about the sustainability of their organic farming business.
My article in this daily on Nov. 2, 2021, entitled “Desa–desa yang Menggeliat” (“Growing Economic Activities in Villages”) shows optimism because in some villages, many young people are willing to live and work in their villages. However, it must be admitted, this is not a general trend.
The data show that the percentage of the Indonesian population living in cities is increasing. According to the Statistics Indonesia (BPS), in 2020, 56.7 percent of Indonesia's population lived in urban areas. The figure was higher than 53.3 percent in 2015. BPS estimated that in 2025, around 60 percent of Indonesia's population will be urban residents.
The migration of young people to cities is not always due to economic reasons. The sheen of a big city with a variety of public facilities is another attraction for young people.
The mass media, especially television in Indonesia, are very urban-centric. News and stories about Jakarta and other big cities such as those related to the characteristics and lifestyles of their inhabitants dominate Indonesian television shows. Perhaps only state-owned television station TVRI is still broadcasting the atmosphere of rural life.
Even when the television station broadcasts the atmosphere or rural life, most of the programs are related to sightseeing, tours or vacations. This shows the atmosphere of a village or area from the point-of-view of a city person.
Such a situation makes many people dream of living in and looking for work in the city. In short, living in the city is cool in the eyes of the young people.
However, it should not be forgotten that the migration of productive-age villagers has also resulted in the loss of human resource potential in the village.
Undeniably, urbanization does improve the welfare of the villagers. However, it should not be forgotten that the migration of productive-age villagers has also resulted in the loss of human resource potential in the village.
Now is the time to make more serious efforts to make the village attractive to its youth. It is a task that must be carried out by all the stakeholders , including the mass media. Enjoy the homecoming trip. Have a good time with family and friends.
FE UNPAR
Siwi Nugraheni
SIWI NUGRAHENI,Lecturer of the School of Economics, Parahyangan Catholic University
(This article was translated by Hendarsyah Tarmizi)
