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At the center of this transformation lies the rapid urbanization of the region. Between 1970 and 2017, Asia’s emerging economies outpaced the rest of the world in both population growth and growth rate. urban population is increasing 3.4% per year compared to 2.6% in the rest of the developing world and 1% in advanced economies. The pace will continue in the coming years as the region adds more than 1 billion new urban residents by 2050.
Today, Asia Pacific cities are gaining international fame with the cities of Auckland, Osaka, Adelaide, Wellington, Tokyo, Perth, Melbourne and Brisbane making up eight of the world’s top 10 artists. 2021 Global Liveability Index by the Economist Intelligence Unit. However, citizens in the low-income geographies of the continent face the world’s most challenging living environments. Inside 2021 ranking 99 of the world’s 100 cities are in Asia, which are most at risk from environmental factors such as pollution, extreme heat stress, dwindling water supplies, natural hazards and vulnerability to climate change.
Urban residents who are often worst affected by climate vulnerability come from lower socioeconomic groups, who can live in dangerous and marginal lands, poor quality buildings without flood prevention measures and temperature control. They may also have no access to facilities such as air conditioning and have less financial buffering to withstand income shocks from disasters such as flooding.
As cities grow, they can often become more unequal as increased economic activity increases land values and pollution, putting low-income citizens at a disadvantage who are less able to move to better areas. Even commendable investments can make the problem worse. For example, public transport systems that reduce travel time to central urban areas can strain low incomes by increasing rents along routes. relocation residents. Homes in Asia have become increasingly expensive for many. An analysis of 211 Asian cities found that home prices for median income households were severely unaffordable. Inaccessible to affordable housing, many urban residents settle for inadequate housing with only limited access to safe water and sanitation.
Despite the breadth and diversity of challenges, the region can take heart from its past and present. Khoo Teng Chye, former managing director of Singapore’s Ministry of National Development’s (MND) Livable Cities Centre, recalls Singapore’s rise to prominence among the world’s most livable cities, but it got off to a rough start.
“In the early 1960s, [Singapore was] rapidly growing and overcrowded, housing shortages, large numbers of slums and people in poor, miserable conditions. The Singapore river was an open sewer and had water rationing. I remember my childhood, faucets would dry all day, but in monsoons there would be floods. Every urban problem you can think of, we had it! Today our population has tripled, but still the city has become more livable, attractive and resilient.”
Now progress is being made to become more sustainable, resilient and inclusive in Asia Pacific. Cities are starting to break ground in discovering innovative responses to environmental challenges in the region, including leveraging nature-based resilience such as “sponge cities” to reduce floods and improve air quality, and retrofit “net zero carbon” new buildings and old buildings to make them better. . they are developing more climate sensitive and more sustainable transportation solutions.
Leveraging technology is also helping cities address gaps in service delivery and proactively support the vulnerable, including the digitization of land rights and geospatial mapping that assists citizens in areas without official address systems. technology solutions for the health care and support of the elderly.
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