Just over half the world's population now call cities home. Soon some 500 cities around the world will have more than 1 million people each. Within a couple of decades, says the UN, 5 billion people will live in cities, with the most rapid rise in the number of urban dwellers coming in Asia and Africa. As per the UN data provided, Asia is already home to more than half the world’s population. Of the world’s 30 largest cities, 21 are in Asia. By next year, Asia will also become home to half of the world’s middle class, defined as those living in households with daily per capita incomes of between $10 and $100 at 2005 purchasing power parity.
It is believed that many cities will merge to create new urban settlements. It is estimated that Japan's Tokyo Nagoya-Osaka-Kyoto-Kobe mega-region will have a population of 60 million by 2015. The city region of Bangkok in Thailand will expand another 200 kilometres from its current centre by 2020.
South and Southeast Asian cities have a combined population of more than 2.5 billion, eclipsing that of China. By 2050, India will see its urban population soar to 416 million people. Keeping up with the trend of urbanisation population of cities in Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam is rapidly expanding. While the infrastructure of cities is adequate, and there is a boundless investment on the way, the social and environmental risks are mounting.
Just under half of all Asians live in cities, compared to roughly 82% of Americans and 74% of Europeans. It is estimated that by 2030, Asia will contribute roughly 60% of global growth with the majority of contribution from China, India and developing markets throughout South-East Asia.
