Global Settlement trends and implications for humanitarian action

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Situation: Although no one knows the precise date, human beings likely became a primarily urban species about 6-7 years ago, and there’s no going back: Nearly 92% of TOTAL GLOBAL population growth during the 2010-2030 period is projected to be located in the cities of countries in less developed regions.

In absolute terms, that’s about 1.4 BILLION additional urban residents in those countries, or the equivalent of a city the size of Curitiba, or Cape Town, or Dar-es-Salam, or Surabaya emerging every two weeks during every month of every year for 20 years.

And urban growth will become even more pronounced during the 2030-2050 period, when 108% of TOTAL GLOBAL population growth is projected to be located in the cities of countries in less developed regions, resulting in two of every three humans on the planet living in an urban area by 2050.

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