Fastest Growing Cities, from Bangalore to Kabul

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Oct. 31 is slated to be a momentous day in the world’s history, as the symbolic date that the 7 billionth person will take her first breath, according to the United Nations Population Division.

Of course we will never know for sure when or where, exactly, the 7 billionth person is born (or if she is already among the living), though some demographers have pegged the Indian province Uttar Pradesh as the most likely locale, due to the sheer number of births expected in the region this year. India is one of several countries and regions expected to experience a population explosion in the next few decades.

From 2010 to 2025 the population of Africa could increase by as much as 43.7 percent, Latin America and the Caribbean by 19.9 percent, Asia by 18.2 percent, Northern America by 16.7 percent, Oceania by 16.6 percent, and Europe by 4.4 percent. The growth will be centered in cities. Three years ago, for the first time, Earth found most of its inhabitants living in cities, and future growth will occur primarily in urban areas.

To find the fastest-growing cities around the world, The Daily Beast used population projections from the United Nations as well as GDP projections from PricewaterhouseCoopers. In other words, the cities on this list have both a burgeoning populace and emergent economies.

-Research by Clark Merrefield

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Current population: 7.2 million

Estimated population, 2025: 9.5 million

Population growth by 2025: 31.7%

Current GDP: $69 billion

Estimated GDP, 2025: $209 billion

Estimated GDP growth per year, 2008–2025: 6.5%

Aijaz Rahi / AP Photo

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Current population: 5.2 million

Estimated population, 2025: 8.0 million

Population growth by 2025: 53.8%

Current GDP: $35 billion

Estimated GDP, 2025: $86 billion

Estimated GDP growth per year, 2008–2025: 5.5%

Nasser Nasser / AP Photo

galleries/2011/10/24/fastest-growing-cities/fastest-growing-cities-18-hyderabad_z31251

Current population: 6.8 million

Estimated population, 2025: 8.9 million

Population growth by 2025: 31.7%

Current GDP: $58 billion

Estimated GDP, 2025: $170 billion

Estimated GDP growth per year, 2008–2025: 6.5%

Pervez Masih / AP Photo

galleries/2011/10/24/fastest-growing-cities/fastest-growing-cities-17-ahmedabad_rnqxdy

Current population: 5.7 million

Estimated population, 2025: 7.6 million

Population growth by 2025: 32.4%

Current GDP: $49 billion

Estimated GDP, 2025: $145 billion

Estimated GDP growth per year, 2008–2025: 6.5%

AP Photo

galleries/2011/10/24/fastest-growing-cities/fastest-growing-cities-16-kano_nj3qly

Current population: 3.4 million

Estimated population, 2025: 5.1 million

Population growth by 2025: 49%

Current GDP: $9 billion

Estimated GDP, 2025: $25 billion

Estimated GDP growth per year, 2008–2025: 6.2%

galleries/2011/10/24/fastest-growing-cities/fastest-growing-cities-15-chittagong_tetowe

Current population: 5 million

Estimated population, 2025: 7.3 million

Population growth by 2025: 46.4%

Current GDP: $24 billion

Estimated GDP, 2025: $67 billion

Estimated GDP growth per year, 2008–2025: 6.3%

Getty Images

galleries/2011/10/24/fastest-growing-cities/fastest-growing-cities-14-pune_xx9fa0

Current population: 5 million

Estimated population, 2025: 6.6 million

Population growth by 2025: 32.9%

Current GDP: $48 billion

Estimated GDP, 2025: $142 billion

Estimated GDP growth per year, 2008–2025: 6.6%

galleries/2011/10/24/fastest-growing-cities/fastest-growing-cities-13-lagos_srnanf

Current population: 10.6 million

Estimated population, 2025: 15.8 million

Population growth by 2025: 49.5%

Current GDP: $35 billion

Estimated GDP, 2025: $101 billion

Estimated GDP growth per year, 2008–2025: 6.4%

Lekan Oyekanmi / AP Photo

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Current population: 4.8 million

Estimated population, 2025: 8.1 million

Population growth by 2025: 69.2%

Current GDP: $33 billion

Estimated GDP, 2025: $93 billion

Estimated GDP growth per year, 2008–2025: 6.3%

Rebecca Blackwell / AP Photo

galleries/2011/10/24/fastest-growing-cities/fastest-growing-cities-11-kanpur_nvacdn

Current population: 3.4 million

Estimated population, 2025: 4.5 million

Population growth by 2025: 33.8%

Current GDP: $26 billion

Estimated GDP, 2025: $76 billion

Estimated GDP growth per year, 2008–2025: 6.6%

Maneesh Agnihotri / The India Today Group / Getty Images

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Current population: 8.8 million

Estimated population, 2025: 15 million

Population growth by 2025: 71.8%

Current GDP: $17 billion

Estimated GDP, 2025: $48 billion

Estimated GDP growth per year, 2008–2025: 6.3%

galleries/2011/10/24/fastest-growing-cities/fastest-growing-cities-9-changchun_irvqdq

Current population: 3.6 million

Estimated population, 2025: 4.7 million

Population growth by 2025: 29.9%

Current GDP: $26 billion

Estimated GDP, 2025: $81 billion

Estimated GDP growth per year, 2008–2025: 6.9%

ChinaFotoPress / Getty Images

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Current population: 2.9 million

Estimated population, 2025: 3.9 million

Population growth by 2025: 34.3%

Current GDP: $22 billion

Estimated GDP, 2025: $66 billion

Estimated GDP growth per year, 2008–2025: 6.6%

Rajesh Kumar Singh / AP Photo

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Current population: 4.2 million

Estimated population, 2025: 5.6 million

Population growth by 2025: 33.9%

Current GDP: $36 billion

Estimated GDP, 2025: $107 billion

Estimated GDP growth per year, 2008–2025: 6.7%

Ajit Solanki / AP Photo

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Current population: 3.5 million

Estimated population, 2025: 6.2 million

Population growth by 2025: 77.3%

Current GDP: $12 billion

Estimated GDP, 2025: $33 billion

Estimated GDP growth per year, 2008–2025: 6.4%

Sayyid Abdul Azim / AP Photo

galleries/2011/10/24/fastest-growing-cities/fastest-growing-cities-5-jaipur_yfv1qz

Current population: 3.1 million

Estimated population, 2025: 4.2 million

Population growth by 2025: 34.3%

Current GDP: $24 billion

Estimated GDP, 2025: $71 billion

Estimated GDP growth per year, 2008–2025: 6.7%

The India Today Group / Getty Images

galleries/2011/10/24/fastest-growing-cities/fastest-growing-cities-4-kabul_tzfq1w

Current population: 3.7 million

Estimated population, 2025: 6.9 million

Population growth by 2025: 84.6%

Current GDP: $14 billion

Estimated GDP, 2025: $41 billion

Estimated GDP growth per year, 2008–2025: 6.5%

Anja Niedringhaus / AP Photo

galleries/2011/10/24/fastest-growing-cities/fastest-growing-cities-3-dar-es-salaam_tz9h0v

Current population: 3.4 million

Estimated population, 2025: 6.2 million

Population growth by 2025: 85.2%

Current GDP: $8 billion

Estimated GDP, 2025: $24 billion

Estimated GDP growth per year, 2008–2025: 6.5%

Yasuyoshi Chiba / Getty Images

galleries/2011/10/24/fastest-growing-cities/fastest-growing-cities-2-ho-chi-minh_roucx1

Current population: 6.2 million

Estimated population, 2025: 9 million

Population growth by 2025: 45.2%

Current GDP: $58 billion

Estimated GDP, 2025: $181 billion

Estimated GDP growth per year, 2008–2025: 7.0%

Hoang Dinh Nam / Getty Images

Fastest Growing Cities, from Bangalore to Kabul

The Daily Beast finds the global cities—from Bangalore to Kabul—that are projected to grow the most.