Nigeria’s commercial city, Lagos has been named among the top ten fastest growing cities in the world, according to Berlin-based chart-making website Datawrapper.
The chart, which uses United Nations data from between 2000 and 2016, shows Lagos is placed seventh on the top ten list behind Beihai in China, Ghaziabad in India, Sana’a in Yemen, Surat in India, Kabul in Afghanistan and Bamako in Mali.
With more and more people choosing to live in cities rather than in the countryside, many of the world’s urban areas are growing at an astonishing rate.
This incredible map shows the speed at which people are moving to cities in China, India and Africa, with much slower urban growth happening in parts of Europe and the US.
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African cities – especially those in Nigeria – are seeing the most dramatic growth while the US cities of Pittsburgh, Cleveland and Detroit are starting to see people leave.
With the global population expected to reach 9.5 billion in 2075, many of the world’s giant cities – particularly in the developing world – are quickly filling up.
The map lists 500 cities with over 1 million people, and is shaded based on yearly population growth rate between 2000 and 2016.
Percent growth corresponds with darker shades of teal, while orange shows negative growth over the time-frame.
Another part of Nigeria that is expanding at a rapid rate is Abuja, with a 7 per cent annual increase between 2000 and 2016.
The UN estimates the number of people living in medium-sized cities of up to 5 million inhabitants is expected to jump to 1.1 billion by 2030, up from 827 million in 2014.
It also predicts an estimated 27 percent of the world’s population will be living in smaller cities of at least 1 million people by 2030.
Growth in the US has generally been slower, with the fastest increase happening in Charlotte and Austin, with 5 per cent and 4 per cent annual growth respectively.
Growth in also Europe is also markedly slower, with the majority of urban areas growing at less than 1 per cent each year.
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