In 2015 however, as many as 29 such cities exist, and by 2030, that number will grow to 41, including Johannesburg.<\/p>\n
Read: Fastest growing cities in South Africa<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n As early as 2020, the greater Shanghai area could even become a \u201cgiga city\u201d with 170 million inhabitants \u2013 more than double the population of Germany.<\/p>\n “The growth of megacities right now is primarily an Asian phenomenon. Six of the ten cities with the largest populations are in that part of the world,” said Jay Ralph, member of the Board of Management of Allianz SE and responsible for global asset management among other things.<\/p>\n “Estimates indicate that the Asian middle class will grow to 1.75 billion by 2020. By the end of 2014, 11%of our assets under management for customers originated in this region. The percentage is expected to increase further.”<\/p>\n Current and future megacities (Click to enlarge)<\/p><\/div>\n How will it look?<\/strong><\/p>\n In the megacity of the future more and more people will live in smaller households because the traditional family unit is becoming increasingly disbanded, the report said.<\/p>\n The demand for living space will therefore rise substantially. This challenge can be countered with innovative technologies, such as 3D-printed houses.<\/p>\n With resilience in mind, academics, politicians and business representatives have developed a vision of a Smart City.<\/p>\n (click to enlarge)<\/p><\/div>\n The nervous system of tomorrow\u2019s intelligent city will be based on the Internet: electricity, transportation as well as supply and disposal systems will all be electronically linked.<\/p>\n Buildings will produce their own electricity and even store it, for example using high-powered battery storage systems. This will result in a decentralized energy-generation and storage system, which will have the additional benefit of mitigating the impact of power outages.<\/p>\n “Automatic traffic control systems will respond to real-time data, reducing traffic and redirecting it if necessary. The workplace and the home will merge,” the report said.<\/p>\n What South Africa\u2019s population will look like in 2050<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n Gauteng population breaches 13 million<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n![\"Current](\"http:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/Current-and-future-megacities.png\")
<\/a>![\"(click](\"http:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/Megacity-solutions.jpg\")
<\/a>More on population<\/h3>\n