(a) In what four ways does a town differ from a village? (b) Describe with examples three functions which a town may perform for a village

Answer Details

(a) Four ways a town differs from a village

(A town also covers a larger built-up area and has higher-order services than a village.)

(b) Three functions a town performs for a village (with examples)

1. Market/commercial function: the town acts as a market centre where villagers sell their farm produce and buy manufactured goods they cannot get in the village (e.g. Onitsha or Kano markets serving surrounding villages).
2. Service function (health, education, administration): the town provides higher-order services such as hospitals, secondary schools, banks and government offices that serve the villagers (e.g. villagers travel to a nearby town for a general hospital or a bank).
3. Employment and industrial function: the town offers jobs in industries, offices and services, and processes the raw materials produced in the villages (e.g. a cotton-ginnery or cocoa-processing town buying and processing produce from nearby farming villages).