Khairul Alam: Around the world, people are moving to cities, leading to increasing crowds and a rise in the number of megacities. A recently published UN report highlights these facts. According to the report, Jakarta, the capital of Indonesia, is now the world’s most populous city.
Jakarta has surpassed the previous most populous city, Tokyo, the capital of Japan, to claim the #1 spot. Bangladesh’s capital, Dhaka, has seen the most significant jump in the rankings, moving up from its previous position at #9 on the UN’s list.
According to the latest list, 41.9 million people currently reside in Jakarta, a coastal city located in the western part of Indonesia’s densely populated Java island.
The UN published this report titled ‘World Urbanization Prospects 2025’ on November 18.
Dhaka follows Jakarta at #2, with a current population of 36.6 million. However, given the rate at which Dhaka’s population is growing, the UN forecasts that Dhaka will displace Jakarta to become the world’s most populous city by 2050.
The United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs prepared this report, which is based on estimates and updates the UN’s 2018 population data, according to Sky News reports. The report emphasizes the dramatic increase in the number of people living in cities, calling it a new trend in human settlement.
Tokyo, the capital of Japan, is third. Its population growth has been relatively stable over the past 25 years compared to Jakarta and Dhaka. Tokyo’s current population is 33.4 million. Tokyo was ranked as the world’s most populous city in the UN’s assessment published in 2000.
Since 2000, Jakarta’s population has increased at a rate five times (5x) faster than Tokyo’s, and Dhaka’s population has increased at a rate seven times (7x) faster.
The UN report also states that the number of megacities with over 10 million people globally has grown to 33. In 1975, there were only 8 megacities, meaning the number has increased fourfold.
Of these 33 megacities, 19 are in Asia. Furthermore, 9 out of the top 10 most populous megacities are in Asia.
After Jakarta, Dhaka, and Tokyo, the top 10 list includes: 4. New Delhi, India (30.2 million) 5. Shanghai, China (29.6 million) 6. Guangzhou, China (27.6 million) 7. Manila, Philippines (24.7 million) 8. Kolkata, India (22.5 million) 9. Seoul, South Korea (22.5 million)
The only megacity outside of Asia in the top 10 is Cairo, Egypt, with 32.0 million residents. Among Latin American countries, São Paulo, Brazil, is the most populous city with 18.9 million residents. Lagos, Nigeria, is experiencing the fastest population growth in Sub-Saharan Africa.