Construction World January 2016

COMMENT

Today, more than half of the world’s population lives in cities. At the current rate of urbanisation, this will increase to two thirds by 2030. This is according to Allianz’s report ‘The megacity state: the world’s biggest cities shaping our future’.

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The Chinese government is planning to connect multiple cities. Greater Shanghai will then theoretically have a population of 170 million.

Most massive cities are in Northern America, Latin America and Europe while Asia and Africa have some of the fastest growing cities in the world. Cities with 10 million or more inhabitants are called ‘mega-cities’ (Johannesburg, with a population of 9,7 million, is close to being called a mega-city – it will have a projected population of 11,9 million by 2030). The report states that by 2030 a new kind of city will emerge: gigacities. These cities, albeit almost unimaginable, will have 50million inhab- itants. In China such cities will soon become a reality. The Chinese government is planning to connect multiple cities in five urban conurba- tions that will see the greater Shangai having a population (in theory) of 170 million by 2020. In 1950, there were just two cities that, in today’s terms, were deemed megacities (New York and Tokyo). In 2015 there were 29 (of which 16 were in Asia). By 2030 there will be 41 – Johannesburg one of them. Tokyo (38 million), Delhi (25,7 million) and Shanghai (23,7 million) are currently the

largest megacities and will remain so through 2030. By that time 12 new megacities will have emerged – 10 of these will be in Asia and Africa. Cairo will then be the biggest African city (24,5 million inhabitants), followed by Lagos (24,2 million), Kinshasa (20 million), Johannesburg (11,9 million) and Luanda (10,4 million). A challenge for sustainability The gigantic concentration of people in cities will have huge challenges for sustainable develop- ment – especially given the fact that cities, even though they make up only 2% of the world’s land area, are responsible for 70% of the greenhouse gases produces. Questions that will need answering are how to find a balance between growth, quality of life and climate protection. The report provides some solutions as to the structure such cities could have: these include green roofs, solar film on building fronts, waste-to-power plants, smart-city grids and many more. The challenge for such cities are also wider

such as providing sufficient jobs and housing for inhabitants, basic sanitation, energy, healthcare, education and transport services. Megacities in especially the developed world (America and Europe) are faced with a stagnant (or negative growth rate) while those in Asia and Africa grow extremely fast, which will have its own challenges.

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Wilhelm du Plessis Editor

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EDITOR Wilhelm du Plessis constr@crown.co.za ADVERTISING MANAGER Erna Oosthuizen ernao@crown.co.za LAYOUT & DESIGN Lesley Testa CIRCULATION Karen Smith

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The views expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the editor or the publisher.

CONSTRUCTION WORLD JANUARY 2016