Urban areas are expected to triple in size between 2000 and 2030. Unmanaged urban expansion increases the costs of service provision, deepens spatial inequities, and imposes heavy economic and environmental burdens. New analysis on 499 cities’ urban expansion confirm the challenge of rapid outward expansion are greatest in lower-income cities.

Small- and medium-sized cities and towns in sub-Saharan Africa are growing fast and accumulating risks. Local governments seek to build the resilience of their city in conditions of complex interdependent urban systems and gaps in data and information.

Urban areas are growing at an unprecedented rate, with over half of the world’s population of nearly 4 billion people now residing in cities. By 2050, the number is expected to swell to over 6.5 billion−approximately two-thirds of humanity. Rapid urbanization provides opportunities, yet challenges come in tandem.

National Urban Policy Framework (NUPF) outlines an integrated and coherent approach towards the future of urban planning in India. The NUPF is structured along two lines. Firstly, at the NUPF’s core lie ten sutras or philosophical principles. Secondly, the ten sutras are applied to ten functional areas of urban space and management.

This case study in the World Resources Report, “Towards a More Equal City,” examines transformative urban change in Johannesburg, South Africa, through transit-oriented development (TOD). The paper reviews the evidence on whether Johannesburg’s TOD strategy has helped reduce spatial inequality in the city—and if so, how.

The State of Sri Lankan Cities 2018 presents the first comprehensive assessment of Sri Lanka’s recent urban development. The Report is a key output of the State of Sri Lankan Cities Project.

India is one of the fastest growing countries in the world and urbanisation is both a challenge and an opportunity for India with huge implications for the rest of the world. One critical concern for India’s urbanising future is the provision of basic urban services for all its citizens.

This Global Status Report documents the status and trends of key indicators for energy use, emissions, technologies, policies, and investments to track the buildings and construction sector, globally and in key regions. Central findings of this report include: Buildings play a dominant role in the clean energy transition.