What are the most populous cities in the world

A United Nations report published yesterday (26 November) shows that Indonesia's capital Jakarta has become the world's largest city with 41.9 million people, while Bangladesh's Dhaka ranks second with a population of 3.6 million.

After Jakarta and Dhaka, the third and fourth positions in the list of the world's top 10 populous cities are occupied by Tokyo and New Delhi.

According to the UN's World Urbanisation Prospects 2025, New Delhi currently has a population of 3 crore 2 lakh. China's city of Shanghai ranks 5th with a population of 2 crore 96 lakh.

The report indicates that by 2050, Shanghai will overtake New Delhi and become the 4th most populous city in the world.

In this year's list, another Chinese city, Guangzhou, is ranked sixth, with a population of 2 crore 76 lakh. By 2050, Guangzhou may drop to eighth place with a population of 2 crore 92 lakh.

In the 2025 list, Cairo in Egypt and Manila in the Philippines are ranked 7th and 8th. Cairo's population is now 2 crore 56 lakh, while Manila's stands at 2 crore 47 lakh. The report suggests that by 2050, Cairo will rise to 6th place, while Manila will fall to 9th.

In the current list, Kolkata in India and Seoul in South Korea are ranked 9th and 10th, each with a population of 2 crore 25 lakh. By 2050, Kolkata is expected to fall to 10th place with a population of 2 crore 38 lakh, while Seoul, with 2 crore 12 lakh people, will drop to 12th place.

The report also highlights a dramatic increase in the number of people living in cities worldwide. The United Nations has described this as a "new trend in human settlement."

The UN says the number of megacities — those with populations exceeding 10 million — has surged to 33, up from just eight in 1975.

Although Indonesia is constructing a new capital, Nusantara, the UN estimates that Jakarta's population will continue to grow, adding another 10 million people by mid-century.

The swelling population has fuelled concern over inequality and affordability, issues that have already sparked public protests.

The report also notes that Iran's capital, Tehran, now at nine million people, is struggling with severe water shortages, prompting rationing measures.

In preparing its latest assessment, the UN adopted a new global definition of cities to reduce inconsistencies across countries.

It now classifies a city as a contiguous area of grid cells with at least 1,500 people per square kilometre and a minimum total population of 50,000.