Dhaka now the world’s second-largest city by population, behind Jakarta: UN

Bangladesh's capital overtakes Tokyo, long regarded as the world’s largest city, while Jakarta takes the top position, according to a new UN report

Dhaka has become the world’s second-largest city by population, according to a new United Nations report that highlights the rapid expansion of megacities across the world.

The Bangladeshi capital now has an estimated 36.6 million residents, placing it just behind Indonesian capital Jakarta, which tops the global list with 41.9 million inhabitants. Tokyo, long-time leader in the global population ranking, has been pushed into third place as its population growth stabilises.

The findings come from the World Urbanization Prospects 2025 report, published by the UN’s Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Al Jazeera reports.

Dhaka’s rise has been striking. In the UN’s previous major assessment in 2000, the city ranked ninth. Current projections suggest Dhaka could become the world’s largest city by 2050 if current trends continue.

The report shows a continued surge in megacities -- urban areas with more than 10 million residents. There are now 33 such cities worldwide, compared with just eight in 1975. Nineteen of the 33 are in Asia, and nine of the world’s 10 largest cities are located on the continent.

After Jakarta, Dhaka and Tokyo, the other Asian cities in the top 10 include India's New Delhi (30.2 million), the Chinese cities of Shanghai (29.6 million) and Guangzhou (27.6 million), Philippines' capital Manila (24.7 million), Kolkata (22.5 million) and South Korea's capital Seoul (22.5 million). Egypt's capital Cairo, with 32 million residents, is the only non-Asian city in the top tier.

Jakarta had previously been the second-largest city, but continued growth on the western coast of the densely populated Java island has propelled it to the top of the rankings.

Tokyo’s population, by contrast, has remained relatively stable at 33.4 million.

Beyond Asia, Brazil's São Paulo, with 18.9 million residents, remains the largest city in the Americas, while Nigeria's Lagos, one of the world’s fastest-growing urban areas, is the biggest city in sub-Saharan Africa.