Question

Explain any three economic factors influencing the distribution of world population.

Hint:

Think of where jobs are. Minerals, industries and cities create jobs, so people settle there. Explain each factor in two or three lines with an example.

Answer 1

Step 1: Understand the question:
The question asks how the spread of people over the world is shaped by economic activity.
Economic factors are those linked with jobs and income. For 3 marks we explain three such factors.

Step 2: Factor 1: Minerals:
Areas rich in minerals attract industries, and industries need workers.
Mining itself gives jobs, so people settle near the mines.
The copper belt of Zambia (Katanga) in Africa is a good example of a dense settlement built around minerals.

Step 3: Factor 2: Industrialisation:
Industrial belts offer jobs in factories, offices and the service trades that grow around them.
People from the nearby countryside move in, so the population grows thick.
The Kobe-Osaka region of Japan is very densely populated even though the land is hilly, because of its industries.

Step 4: Factor 3: Urbanisation:
Cities give better jobs, schools, hospitals, transport and communication.
Because of these gains, people keep moving from villages to towns.
This rural-urban movement makes cities grow fast. Mega cities like Tokyo, New York and Mumbai pull in many migrants every year.

Final Answer:
Minerals, industrialisation and urbanisation are three economic factors. Each one creates jobs, and people settle where jobs are, so these areas become thickly populated.