Mapped: The fastest-growing cities in the world

Mapped: The fastest-growing cities in the world Ghaziabad, a city next to Delhi, tops the table of annual growth rates at 5.2 per cent, followed by Surat in the western Indian state of Gujarat - Bookmark - CommentsGo to comments Become an Independent member to bookmark this article Already a member? Log in The world's fastest-growing cities are all in Asia and Africa, with Indian cities topping the list in terms of annual growth, according to a global ranking of urban population growth. Every city in the top 10 lists for the "Fastest Growing Cities in the World 2026" rankings, published by World Population Review, is either in Asia or Africa. Ghaziabad, a city next to Delhi, tops the table of annual growth rates at 5.2 per cent, followed by Surat in the western Indian state of Gujarat at 4.99 per cent, Kabul in Afghanistan at 4.74 per cent and Lagos in Nigeria at 4.44 per cent. Delhi itself is growing at 3 per cent a year, and the table also includes capitals like Dhaka at 3.79 per cent, Nairobi at 4 per cent and Kampala in Uganda at 4.03 per cent. Toluca in Mexico is the one city in that group outside Asia and Africa. The fastest-growing cities, by annual growth rate - Ghaziabad, India (next to Delhi): 5.2 per cent - Surat, India (in Gujarat): 4.99 per cent - Kabul, Afghanistan: 4.74 per cent - Lagos, Nigeria: 4.44 per cent - Toluca, Mexico: 4.25 per cent - Lubumbashi, Democratic Republic of Congo: 4.1 per cent - Kampala, Uganda: 4.03 per cent - Joint eighth, all at 4 per cent: Luanda (Angola), Dar es Salaam (Tanzania), Nairobi (Kenya), Bamako (Mali), Patna, Rajkot and Faridabad (India) and Maputo (Mozambique) The ranking draws on growth rates from the City Mayors Foundation, a research group that studies cities, and on United Nations estimates that cover different periods. Ranked by total growth in a five-year-period, the top ten list is led by Malappuram in the southern Indian state of Kerala, where the population rose by 44 per cent, followed by Can Tho in Vietnam and Suqian in China at 37 per cent each. Kozhikode, also in Kerala, grew by 35 per cent, Abuja in Nigeria by 34 per cent and Suzhou in China by 33 per cent, while Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates and Putian in China grew by 32 per cent each and Muscat in Oman and Kollam in Kerala by 31 per cent each. In terms of most new residents each hour, it puts Delhi first, followed by Shanghai, Dhaka, Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Chongqing, Lahore, Bengaluru, Lagos, Cairo and Beijing. The list of the world’s most populated cities has also changed in the last decade. Jakarta, the Indonesian capital, has overtaken Tokyo as the world’s biggest city, with 41.9 million people against Tokyo’s 33.4 million. Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh, rose from ninth place to second with 36.6 million people, and the UN projects it will become the biggest city by 2050. The 20 biggest cities, by total population - Jakarta, Indonesia: 41.9 million - Dhaka, Bangladesh: 36.6 million - Tokyo, Japan: 33.4 million - Delhi, India: 30.2 million - Shanghai, China: 29.6 million - Guangzhou, China: 27.6 million - Cairo, Egypt: 25.6 million - Manila, Philippines: 24.7 million - Kolkata, India: 22.6 million - Seoul, South Korea: 22.5 million - Karachi, Pakistan: 21.4 million - Mumbai, India: 20.2 million - São Paulo, Brazil: 19.0 million - Bangkok, Thailand: 18.2 million - Mexico City, Mexico: 17.7 million - Beijing, China: 17.0 million - Lahore, Pakistan: 15.2 million - Istanbul, Turkey: 15.0 million - Moscow, Russia: 14.5 million - Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam: 14.1 million World Population Review said about 55 per cent of the world's people live in urban areas, a share that is expected to reach 68 per cent by 2050. It attributed the growth to the larger job markets, higher wages and better schools and services that cities offer, and said cities across Asia and Africa were growing fastest. The United Nations projects that India, China and Nigeria will account for 35 per cent of the growth in the world's urban population between 2018 and 2050, according to the ranking. Many cities are growing faster than their infrastructure can cope with, World Population Review said. In Lagos, it said, fewer than 10 per cent of people live in homes with sewer connections and fewer than 20 per cent have access to tap water, with many homes in slums and informal settlements on the edge of the city. Join our commenting forum Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies Comments