New Zealand and Australian cities dominated the Global Liveability Index 2021 published by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), owing to their strong response to the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) pandemic. The data for the liveability survey was collected from February 22, 2020, to March 21, 2021, the period that witnessed multiple waves of pandemic across the world. According to the EIU report, the overall global average liveability fell by seven points as compared with the pre-pandemic score.
Auckland has been ranked the best on liveability rankings due to the ability of New Zealand city to contain Covid-19 faster, leading to the early lifting of restrictions than other cities around the world. According to the EIU survey, six of the top 10 cities are in New Zealand and Australia, where tighter border controls from the early days of the pandemic allowed residents to live a relatively normal life.
The report also noted a decline in liveability in many European cities as they battled the second Covid-19 wave by closing schools and restaurants, and restructuring cultural and sporting events. As the pandemic hit healthcare hard in most cities around the world, cities concentrated in western Europe and the Asia-Pacific region were least affected.
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Japanese cities of Osaka and Tokyo grabbed second and fourth place on EIU’s Global Liveability Index 2021, while two Swiss cities, Zurich and Geneva, were ranked seventh and eighth respectively. Four Australian cities – Adelaide, Perth, Melbourne and Brisbane – made it to the top 10 list, with Melbourne sharing the eighth position with Geneva. Honolulu was the biggest mover up the ranking in the past six months, moving 46 places to get the 14th rank on the liveability index.
As per the report, living conditions remained worst in the Syrian capital Damascus. Other cities scraping along the bottom of the rankings are Lagos, Port Moresby, and Dhaka. The Pakistani city of Karachi also featured in the 10 least liveable cities in the world.
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Here’s the list of the 10 most liveable cities in the world:
- Auckland (New Zealand)
- Osaka (Japan)
- Adelaide (Australia)
- Wellington (New Zealand)
- Tokyo (Japan)
- Perth (Australia)
- Zurich (Switzerland)
- Geneva (Switzerland)
- Melbourne (Australia)
- Brisbane (Australia)
Here’s the list of the 10 least liveable cities in the world:
- Damascus (Syria)
- Lagos (Nigeria)
- Port Moresby (Papua New Guinea)
- Dhaka (Bangladesh)
- Algiers (Algeria)
- Tripoli (Libya)
- Karachi (Pakistan)
- Harare (Zimbabwe)
- Douala (Cameroon)
- Caracas (Venezuela)
