Pre-reading questions:
- Do you prefer living in a city or in the countryside? Please explain your answer.
- Do you think your hometown is overpopulated? Please explain your answer.
- What do you like most about your city?
World Bank data states that nations such as Cambodia, Mongolia, Myanmar, and the Philippines have a high number of informal settlers in key cities. Cities such as Manila and Jakarta offer illegal housing for migrants. A World Bank senior specialist said that the rise of migrants is an indicator of a growing economy.
However, governments are unable to provide quality housing to increasing settlers. World Bank offers two solutions for improvement. One solution is to convert a rural town into an urbanized city like what Singapore did, or establish urban centers outside key cities to decongest the population. World Bank added that addressing informal settlement will boost the economy.
Vocabulary:
settler- [noun] people who are living in a new land
migrant- [noun] people who are moving to find work
indicator- [noun] sign or signal
decongest- [verb] lighten
boost- [verb] make something great
Comprehension Questions:
- What are the names of the nations mentioned with a high number of informal settlers?
- Why do cities like Manila and Jakarta have increasing migrants?
- According to a World Bank senior specialist, what happens when the number of migrants increase?
- What are the solutions offered by World Bank?
- What did World Bank say about informal settlers?
Express Your Opinion:
- What do you think about informal settlers in your country?
- Do you think the government in your city is effective in solving the issues with informal settlers? Please explain your answer.
- Why do you think people migrate?
- Which of the two solutions given by World Bank would be more effective? Please explain your answer.
- Imagine that you’re a World Bank specialist. What solution/s will you give to decongest the population of key cities?