The Urban Century

Today, 57 per cent of the world’s population lives in urban areas, a proportion that is expected to reach 68 per cent in 2050. Projections show that Asia and Africa will be the epicenters of global urbanisation for the coming decades, as close to 90 per cent of the increase in urban population will take place in Asia and Africa. Three countries, India, China and Nigeria, together will account for 35 per cent of the projected world’s urban population. The current trend of urbanisation shows that the Asian trajectory will be very different from that of Africa. Unlike Africa, where high fertility rates are driving urbanisation, Asia’s urbanisation is predominantly fueled by rural-urban migration, in-situ urbanisation and expansion of urban areas.

Further, whereas Asian urbanisation is characterised by population concentration in megacities, African cities are yet to experience such urban concentration. At this juncture, it is essential to understand such trends, patterns and key drivers of urbanisation in these two continents. “The Urban Century - Trends and Patterns of Urbanisation in Asia and Africa” is a timely publication for researchers, academicians and policymakers. It tries to understand the macro scenario of urbanisation in Asia and Africa with a special focus on India. It also tries to highlight the regional differences and determining factors behind the process of urbanisation in these regions and the inter-linkages between urbanisation and socio-economic characteristics of countries in Asia and Africa.

This report is the outcome of the research project undertaken by a team of researchers working on “Sustainable, Healthy and Learning Cities and Neighbourhoods” project in NIUA. The findings from this report will ignite a fresh public discourse on how the opportunities offered by urbanisation can be leveraged in the Decade of Action to accelerate growth and shared prosperity to advance the achievement of the SDGs by 2030. 

Abstract based directly on source.