Sustainable Cities and Communities
Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable.
Slum dwellers
1.16 billion (est)
UN-Habitat estimate · 2025
Urban population share
58% (est)
UN estimate · 2025
People breathing polluted air (above WHO limits)
99% (est)
WHO estimate · 2025
Cities sprawl vs densify rate
3.5x faster (est)
UN-Habitat estimate · 2025
Global Progress Score
Based on Sustainable Development Report 2025
Historical Trend (2015–2025)
Regional Comparison (2025)
Goal 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities — Score per Country (2025)
Each country is scored 0–100 based on its progress toward this goal. Drag to rotate. Hover or tap a country to see its score.
Key Targets
SDR 2025 scores SDG 11 at 64.8/100 globally. The world's urban population will reach 4.7 billion by 2025 (UN DESA). 55 cities worldwide have committed to net-zero by 2050 under the Race to Zero campaign, representing 1 billion urban residents. Extreme heat in cities is emerging as the primary climate risk: 1 in 3 city dwellers is exposed to temperatures exceeding 40°C for at least 20 days/year (UCL Lancet Countdown 2024). The urban water-energy-food nexus is under increasing strain from climate change.
1 in 3
city dwellers globally exposed to extreme heat (40°C+) for 20+ days per year — a figure rising 3× faster in urban areas than in surrounding countryside due to heat island effects.
UCL Lancet Countdown on Health and Climate Change 2024; SDR 2025
Key Insights
The Slum Crisis
1.1 billion people live in slums: informal settlements lacking secure tenure, safe housing, running water, or sanitation. Urban slum populations are growing fastest in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. Every year, 80 million new urban dwellers arrive globally — most in cities with no capacity to absorb them.
Cities Under Climate Threat
800 million people in 570 cities are exposed to sea-level rise of at least 0.5 metres by 2050. Urban heat islands are intensifying, with city temperatures rising 3-5°C faster than surrounding rural areas. The poorest urban residents — often in low-lying, heat-exposed informal areas — are most at risk.
Transport & Emissions
70% of GHG from road transport comes from urban areas. Designing cities around walking, cycling, and mass transit rather than private cars is the single biggest lever for urban decarbonization. It also improves health: air pollution kills 4.2 million people per year, 99% of whom breathe air exceeding WHO limits.
Cultural Heritage at Risk
Only 47% of the world's cultural and natural heritage sites are in good condition. Urban expansion, climate change, unsustainable tourism, and conflict are the top threats. Heritage loss is irreversible — once a site is destroyed or degraded, the cultural identity, tourism economy, and intergenerational connection are lost forever.
Core Challenges
Urban Governance Fragmentation
Most mayors lack the fiscal and regulatory authority to act on climate, housing, or inequality at scale. Municipal governments in developing countries collect only 1-2% of GDP in own-source revenue. Without fiscal decentralization, local ambition cannot translate into local action.
Affordable Housing Supply Crisis
In virtually every major city globally, formal housing supply is failing to meet demand. Housing costs have risen 3× faster than wages in many cities since 2010. Zoning restrictions, land speculation, and inadequate construction finance create an artificial scarcity in a world capable of building for everyone.
Disaster Risk
90% of deaths from natural disasters occur in low and middle-income countries — in cities with inadequate early warning systems, building codes, and emergency response capacity. Climate change is amplifying urban disaster risk faster than adaptation investment is growing.
2030 Outlook
Cities are both the source of the problem and the site of the solution. The C40 Cities network, Mayors Migration Council, and similar coalitions are demonstrating that local government can lead on climate, inclusion, and resilience. Aligning fiscal capacity with the scale of urban ambition — through intergovernmental transfers and municipal bond markets — is the critical gap.