Dots of varying sizes and colours spread across the globe indicate where people now live, revealing a powerful shift that the fastest-growing cities are no longer concentrated in Europe or North America, but in Asia and Africa, where megacities and rapidly expanding secondary cities are redefining global development.

According to the UN Population Division , more than 56% of the world’s population now lives in urban areas, a figure expected to rise to nearly 70% by 2050. The 2025 city map visually captures this acceleration, with dense clusters across South Asia, East Asia, Southeast Asia, and Sub-Saharan Africa, regions that together account for the majority of new urban residents.

The largest circles on the map, representing megacities with over 10 million people, are increasingly concentrated in Asia. Cities such as Tokyo, Delhi, Shanghai, Dhaka, and Mumbai dominate the urban hierarchy, reflecting decades of population growth, rural-to-urban migration, and industrial expansion. India alone is now home to several of the world’s fastest-growing megacities, a trend linked to its expanding workforce and digital economy.

Yet the map also tells a subtler story. While megacities attract attention, the most rapid growth is occurring in medium-sized and smaller cities, particularly across Africa. Nigeria , Ethiopia, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Tanzania are dotted with cities in the 250,000 to 5 million population range, urban centres that are absorbing millions of new residents each year.

The UN notes that Africa ’s urban population is projected to triple by 2050, making it the world’s fastest-urbanising region.

This urban surge is now tightly linked to current global news. In 2024 and 2025, international headlines have focused on housing shortages, infrastructure strain, youth unemployment, and climate vulnerability in cities.

From flooding in South Asian megacities to heat stress in African urban centres, climate change is amplifying the risks of rapid, unplanned growth. The World Bank estimates that cities generate over 70% of global carbon emissions, while also being the most exposed to climate-related disasters.

At the same time, cities are emerging as engines of opportunity. Urban areas account for more than 80% of global GDP, and governments are increasingly positioning cities as hubs for green jobs, digital services , and innovation.

From the streets of Caracas, Venezuela, to the highlands of Ethiopia, communities mark the season with traditions that blend faith, culture, and local identity that have endured for centuries.

Venezuela: Roller skating to Christmas Mass

In Venezuela, particularly in the capital Caracas, Christmas celebrations transform city streets into festive pathways. One of the country’s most famous traditions involves roller skating to early morning church services in the days leading up to Christmas.

Historically, some neighbourhoods even tied strings to children’s toes before bedtime, believing that angels skating through the streets would tug them awake for Mass. While the custom has evolved, streets are still occasionally closed to allow safe skating. This highlights the communal nature of the celebration.

The tradition highlights how faith and festivity merge in Venezuelan culture, even as the country continues to navigate economic and political challenges that have reshaped daily life in recent years.

Peru: Children take the nativity to the streets

In Peru , Christmas is marked by strong public participation, particularly among children. In some cities and towns, children dress as pastors or biblical figures and parade through the streets, reenacting scenes associated with the birth of Jesus Christ.

These processions reflect Peru’s deeply rooted Catholic traditions, introduced during the colonial period but reshaped through local customs and communal storytelling.

According to Peru Travel , Christmas celebrations often emphasise family gatherings, public performances, and religious devotion, making the holiday a visible part of urban and rural life alike.

Ghana - Feasting and large gatherings

Just like other parts of the world, Christians in Ghana start their Christmas celebrations from the 20th of December with Carol Services that are mostly conducted in the evenings.

The week before the 25th also marks a moment of vigorous shopping for the celebration ahead.

On the 25th, many visit the church in the morning with their best outfits to commemorate the birth of Jesus Christ.

After the morning service, families gather to share meals with friends and neighbours.

Ethiopia: Christmas marked by faith and a traditional game

In Ethiopia, Christmas, known as Ganna or Genna , is celebrated on January 7, following the Julian calendar observed by the Ethiopian Orthodox Church. The holiday is deeply spiritual, beginning with an overnight church service and fasting that reflects the country’s ancient Christian heritage.

One of the most distinctive traditions associated with Ethiopian Christmas is a hockey-style team game also called Ganna. Played in open fields after morning worship, the game symbolises joy and communal unity following the religious observance.

The tradition is reported to be linked to shepherds celebrating the birth of Christ, echoing the biblical nativity story.

The above, based on 2017 GDP per capita data, uses East Germany, long considered a benchmark for post-socialist economic recovery, as a reference point, set at approximately €30,300 per person. Regions shown in red fall below that threshold.

Following reunification in 1990, East Germany inherited outdated infrastructure , lower productivity, and weaker industrial capacity. Since then, the German government has invested more than €2 trillion in reconstruction, subsidies, and regional development.

While income gaps between eastern and western Germany persist, East Germany’s GDP per capita now exceeds that of many EU regions.

According to Eurostat, several regions in Southern Italy, Spain, Portugal, Greece, Eastern Europe , and the Balkans continue to trail behind eastern German states in output per person.

The map underscores long-standing structural challenges. Many red-marked regions are affected by low industrial diversification, weaker transport links, ageing populations, and chronic underinvestment.

In Southern Europe, the aftershocks of the 2008 financial crisis and the eurozone debt crisis slowed recovery for more than a decade. In Eastern Europe and the Balkans, the legacy of post-socialist transition and limited capital inflows continues to constrain growth.

The European Commission has repeatedly acknowledged that regional inequality within the EU remains high, even as national averages improve. Wealth tends to concentrate in capital cities and export-driven regions, leaving rural and peripheral areas behind.

“We must consider both motivation and method,” the prime minister said. “We’ve been informed that the Office of National Intelligence has identified material that reinforces this was an ISIS-inspired attack.”

The shooting, described by authorities as Australia’s worst mass casualty attack since the 1996 Port Arthur massacre, left 15 people dead, including one of the gunmen, and injured more than 40 others. Those killed included Rabbi Eli Schlanger and a Holocaust survivor, according to community leaders.

Police said the attackers were identified as father and son Sajid Akram, 50, and Naveed Akram, 24. Sajid Akram was shot dead by police at the scene, while his son was arrested and remains in custody.

In response, Albanese unveiled a national gun buyback scheme, calling it the most significant firearms reform since the sweeping changes introduced after Port Arthur, where 35 people were killed.

“The terrible events at Bondi show we need to get more guns off our streets,” he said.

Under the proposal, the federal government will partner with states and territories to buy back surplus, newly banned and illegal firearms, with costs shared equally. Albanese noted that Australia now has more than four million firearms in circulation—more than at the time of the Port Arthur tragedy nearly three decades ago.

The government also plans to cap the number of firearms an individual can own, tighten licensing requirements, restrict the types of guns that can be legally owned, require Australian citizenship for firearm licences and fast-track the creation of a National Firearms Register.

“Australians are rightly proud of our gun laws,” Albanese said. “We are not home to the constant carnage we see in some countries, and we intend to keep it that way.”