### Theory:

• Currently, more than $$50$$% of the world’s population lives in urban areas.
• It is expected to have about$$70$$% of the world’s population live in urban areas by $$2050$$.
• Over$$3/5th$$or 60% of the land projected to become urban by $$2030$$is yet to be built.
• Africa is likely to reach a 50% urbanisation rate only in $$2035$$.
• In $$1970$$, Tokyo and New York were the only megacities. But today, there are 23 megacities, 13 in Asia, 4 in Latin America, and 2 each in Africa, Europe and Northern America.
• Megacities account for a small but increasing proportion of the world urban population: 9.9% in $$2011$$and 13.6% in $$2025$$.
• Over half (50%) of the urban population lives and will continue to live in small urban centres with a population of less than half a million.
• In 2011, Northern America experienced the highest level of urbanisation ($$82.2$$ per cent), followed by Latin America and the Caribbean ($$79.1$$per cent).
• Africa and Asia are expected to have the highest rate of urbanisation in the coming decades.
• The urban population is likely to treble in Africa and increase by 1.7 times in Asia over the next four decades.
• Between 2018 and 2050, just 3 countries – India, China and Nigeria – together are expected to account for 35% of the growth in the urban population of the world.
Reference:
https://population.un.org/wup/Publications/Files/WUP2018-KeyFacts.pdf
https://www.un.org/en/ecosoc/integration/pdf/fact_sheet.pdf