Source: United Nations Population Division.
(Detailed PDF Map)

World's Largest Cities

Global urbanization and the emergence of large cities has been a significant process with far reaching economic and social impacts:

• Urbanization involves a much higher level of concentration of the global population, that used to be more dispersed. Higher levels of concentration are easier to service from a market perspective, but are also prone to congestion and diseconomies.
• Several mega-cities of more than 8 million have emerged. These cities command a large share of the global wealth creation and dominate their respective national economies.
• Urban residents have different activities, lifestyles and levels of consumption than rural residents, particularly in developing countries.

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