9. Yangon Metropolitan Area

Yangon Metropolitan Area, also known as the Greater Yangon, is Myanmar’s largest commercial center and home to the country’s former capital, Yangon City. This chapter traces the origin and examines the urban primacy of Yangon Region, the region where this metropolitan area is located. It also examines the recent (1989–2014) and potential future (2014–2030) urban land changes, i.e., changes from non-built-up to built-up lands, in the metropolitan area using geospatial tools and techniques. Finally, it discusses some of the possible key factors influencing the urban development of the area and the potential implications of its rapid population growth and urban land changes to its future sustainable urban development. The analysis showed compelling evidence for Yangon Region’s urban primacy over the other regions/states in the country based on population density and proportion of urban population. Over the past 25 years (1989–2014), the area of built-up lands in the study area has increased more than threefold. The geographic location and landscape characteristics of the metropolitan area and its population growth and status as the largest commercial center in the country and the home of the country’s former capital city are hypothesized to be among the key factors influencing the spatiotemporal patterns of urban land changes and the overall urban development of the area. The simulated urban land changes indicated that built-up lands would continue to expand in the future (2014–2030) under the influence of infill and sprawl development patterns. The intensifying pressure of urbanization due to rapid population growth and urban land changes poses many challenges that need to be considered in sustainable urban development and landscape planning.