Auckland was elected the most liveable city in the world in 2021
like every yearEconomist Unit (EIU), published by the Research and Analysis Department of The Economist consequences Global Liveability Index 2021. Auckland, New Zealand’s largest city, turned out to be the most livable city, followed by Osaka, Japan and Adelaide in Australia. Rome, the only Italian city mentioned in the accessible results, certainly doesn’t shine with its performance. Especially, Capital It lost 21 places compared to the previous analysis, ranking 57th in the world.
How is the index calculated?
The global wellbeing index مؤشر It is an aggregate indicator aimed at Quality of life assessment In 140 cities around the world. The result is a ranking indicating which cities have the best quality of life and those that offer the worst conditions.
Each city is assigned a rating, which is the result of a combination of more than 30 different factors. Among them are qualitative and quantitative indicators. For the first, a team of expert analysts is responsible for determining the score while also taking into account the judgments of groups of people who live in the same cities. On the other hand, the latter is based on objective data and therefore the result is calculated based on the performance of the individual city in a particular area.
The assigned score range of 1, is considered Unbearable, to 100, is considered Ideal. The final output is the total score for the individual city and the average score for each of the categories considered.
Analyzed Categories
The categories considered are five, each with a relative weight. The most important factors are identified for each of them, for which a score is assigned according to the criteria described above.
In the research just published, new indicators have been introduced to look at the impact of the pandemic on urban livability. These include: pressure on the health system, restrictions on sporting events, in places of culture (musical events, cinemas, theaters), in meeting places (restaurants, bars, discos, etc.) and in educational institutions (schools, universities).
The categories considered are:
- stability, understood as political and social stability: petty crime, violent crime, military threats and civil strife are among the main factors taken into account;
- HealthcareAvailability and quality of public and private health, availability of medicines and general health-related indicators;
- culture and environmentclimatic conditions, level of corruption, social or religious restrictions, censorship, and access to culture and sports, consumer goods and services;
- educationAvailability and quality of public and private education;
- infrastructureThe quality of the road network, public transportation, international connectivity, and the quality of energy, water, and communications.
The factors indicated for each category are only part of the total.
The assigned relative weights are: 25% for stability, culture and environment, 20% for healthcare and infrastructure, 10% for education.
2021 results: Auckland is the undisputed queen
The data collected to make the rankings relate to the period between February 22 and March 21, 2021, so results are likely to be influenced by the different situations in which different countries found themselves in that period.
Overall, the global average index fell by 7 points when compared to pre-pandemic scores. Six cities are in the top ten in New Zealand and AustraliaThe infection was contained thanks to the closure of the borders and citizens were able to live in a relatively normal way. Category Healthcare suffered the largest drop. However, education, culture and environment have also been severely affected by the epidemic.
Top 10 livable cities see Auckland on the podium (New Zealand), Osaka (Japan), and Adelaide (Australia). Next in order are Wellington (New Zealand), Tokyo (Japan), Perth (Australia), Zurich (Switzerland), Geneva (Switzerland), Melbourne (Australia) and Brisbane (Australia).
| City | Location | rank | calendar | stability | Healthcare | education | culture and environment | infrastructure |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Auckland | New Zealand | 1 | 96.0 | 95 | 95.8 | 97.9 | 100.0 | 92.9 |
| Osaka | Japan | 2 | 94.2 | 100 | 100.0 | 83.1 | 91.7 | 96.4 |
| Adelaide | Australia | 3 | 94.0 | 95 | 100.0 | 83.8 | 100.0 | 96.4 |
| Wellington | New Zealand | 4 | 93.7 | 95 | 91.7 | 95.1 | 100.0 | 89.3 |
| Tokyo | Japan | 4 | 93.7 | 100 | 100.0 | 84.0 | 91.7 | 92.9 |
| Perth | Australia | 6 | 93.3 | 95 | 100.0 | 78.2 | 100.0 | 100.0 |
| Zurich | Switzerland | 7 | 92.8 | 95 | 100.0 | 85.9 | 83.3 | 96.4 |
| Geneva | Switzerland | 8 | 92.5 | 95 | 100.0 | 84.5 | 83.3 | 96.4 |
| Melbourne | Australia | 8 | 92.5 | 95 | 83.3 | 88.2 | 100.0 | 100.0 |
| Brisbane | Australia | 10 | 92.4 | 95 | 100.0 | 85.9 | 100.0 | 85.7 |
on the other side, The city with the worst quality of life is Damascus, in Syria, which closes at number 140. Between 131 and 139 we find: Caracas (Venezuela), Douala (Cameroon), Harare (Zimbabwe), Karachi (Pakistan), Tripoli (Libya), Algiers (Algeria), Dhaka (Bangladesh) Port Moresby (Papua New Guinea) and Lagos (Nigeria).
The situation in Europe, the United States and Canada
There are no European cities, except for the two Swiss cities, or American cities in the top ten among the best cities. Even Canadians, such as Toronto, Vancouver, Calgary and Montreal, this year did not achieve the very high scores they used to. Even Vienna, which always took first or second place until 2019, this year slipped to 12th. In fact, the ranking was quite different in 2019. Australians ranked Melbourne, Sydney and Adelaide second, third and tenth, respectively. Japan’s Osaka and Tokyo are fourth and seventh. First place for Vienna and ninth for Copenhagen, while Canadian Calgary, Vancouver, Toronto and Montreal won first place.
The reasons for this exacerbation are due to Restrictions due to Covid-19 It is mainly imposed on sporting and cultural events, but it is also imposed on schools and universities. The impact of the epidemic in Europe was particularly violent and consequently the restrictive measures were also more stringent. Not forgetting the pressure on the national health systems: in the period considered for the analysis, Europe was in the midst of a second wave.
The only exception is some American cities, such as Honolulu (Hawaii) and Houston (Texas), which significantly increased their scores. The reasons are due to the massive vaccination campaign and the easing of restrictions. Generally, European cities have gotten worse than othersHamburg, Frankfurt and Dusseldorf, Germany, lost 34, 29 and 28 places, respectively, compared to previous results. Roma is a little better losing “only” 21, to reach 57th place.
Conclusions
The effects of Covid-19 will continue to affect cities, especially the poorest. The main reasons are lack of vaccines and Variable spread, as in India for example. Cities that inject vaccines at a faster rate will instead be able to loosen restrictions, improving culture, the environment and education, as students return to school. The category that will remain under pressure is Healthcare. Once the emergency for hospital admission from Covid-19 ends, the case is due to Accumulation of treatments for other diseases not related to the virus.
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