Where each country is committed to its achieving the 17 SDGs, local governments are responsible for the implementation of SDG 11.
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The Paris Agreement, UN SDG 11 of the 2030 Agenda, and the New Urban Agenda all serve as national urban policy frameworks for sustainable urban development and tools for their localization.  For the assessment of global cities, various indexes rank the qualitative and qualitative factors.

Some indexes rank them in terms of their human-centric achievements, the inherent social and lifestyle benefits they offer, their relative quality of life, or the total progress towards their achieving all 17 UN SDGs.  Other city indexes rank their prosperity, corruption, cost of living, availability of technology applications, and potential for success.

The New Urban Agenda serves as a qualitative toolbox for the accomplishment of the 2030 Agenda in municipalities and the formulation of national urban policy.  SDG 11 focuses on national urban policy and targets sustainable urban development and planning and provides detailed indicators.

The New Urban Agenda is intended as a resource for different actors in the various levels of government and for the private sector, civil society organizations, and all who use urban spaces.  The territorial approach to local development (TALD) calls for a coherent and integrated national urban policy that considers the city in its regional context.

The initiatives require new urban rules and regulations, improved urban planning and design, and municipal finance.  They call for consultation and inclusion of all actors and stakeholders in the process, including partnerships with business and civil society to find sustainable solutions to the urban challenges.

Local governments bear the primary responsibility for urban management, public services delivery, and key infrastructure.  They are generally accountable to citizens in their jurisdiction for the planning, construction, development, management and improvement of urban areas.

City Country CAI CCC CCI CCL CLI CPI‎ ECI GCI GCO GLI ICI LCI PIR QCL SCI WBC
Aberdeen GBR 151 128
Abha SAU 151 114 102
Abidjan CIV 130 109 143 56 77 127 124 24 208
Abu Dhabi ARE 17 5 76 49 4 71 44 56 45 78 28 15
Abuja NGA 117 85 114
Accra GHA 144 110 119 58 106 146 87 165
Addis Ababa ETH 114 60 140 29 194 209
Adelaide AUS 10 44 88 29 75
Agana GUM 46 70 139
Ahmedabad IND 131 141 143 33
Alexandria EGY 148 149 39
Algiers DZA 118 132 30 198 185
Almaty KAZ 113 124 105 25 85 92 100 34 193 177
Amman JOR 49 83 90 33 22 91 98 34 94 120
Amsterdam NLD 30 12 15 23 19 11 11 86 20 17 49 44 17 11 17 17
Ankara TUR 84 31 113 42 55
Antananarivo MDG 145 136 66 214
Antwerp BEL 43 21 39
Aruba ABW 57 74
Ashgabat TKM 1
Asunción PRY 101 103 102 187
Athens GRC 83 75 45 20 45 34 72 40 115 41 89 111 79
Atlanta USA 70 33 47 50 51 72 64 49
Auckland NZL 23 34 23 21 12 42 70 60 3 9 83
Austin USA 129 49 54
Baghdad IRQ 134 128 231
Baku AZE 88 96 104 31 172 195
Baltimore USA 68 46 82
Bamako MLI 63 126 220
Bandar Seri Begawan BRN 145 101 122 106
Bandung IDN 136 98 118 30
Bangalore IND 91 88 35 133 38 170 83 149 93
Bangkok THA 70 80 36 80 37 105 98 42 46 81 133 76 31
Bangui CAF 30
Banjul GMB 116 140 28 200 179
Barcelona ESP 37 28 33 26 35 17 30 6 39 30 46 84 61 43 58 8
Beijing CHN 72 73 7-8 5 73 28 75 23 75 50 9 90 120 69 26
Beirut LBN 96 81 101 137 31 3 184
Belfast GBR 39 148
Belgrade SRB 91 66 104 82 37 163 80 139
Belo Horizonte BRA 113 13 129 39
Berlin DEU 15 18 29-30 15 7 18 22 21 48 60 18 13 50 18
Bern CHE 41 10
Bilbao ESP 39 10
Birmingham GBR 38 40 121 66 49 51
Bishkek KGZ 31 209
Blantyre MWI 147 139 63 190 181
Bogota COL 94 59 92 120 108 180 86 128 116
Bologna ITA 35 77
Bordeaux FRA 21 37
Boston USA 21 22 21 47 40 42 56 50 16 36 57 35
Brasília BRA 205
Bratislava SVK 66 37 26 64 37 110 21 80 96
Brazzaville COG 134 144 38 224
Bridgetown BRB 81 76
Brisbane AUS 24 44 24 22 47 81 35 16 70
Bristol GBR 16 39
Brussels BEL 33 47 14 34 15 25 42 29 43 53 37 28 52 65
Bucharest ROU 103 61 24 41 71 82 41 160 53 109 106 91
Budapest HUN 98 57 71 53 16 37 32 56 34 44 162 55 76 97 38
Buenos Aires ARG 141 81 40 25 54 86 62 42 168 78 91 98 63
Busan KOR 59 44 94 37
Cairo EGY 109 99 64 115 39 145 123 41 137 113 177 104
Calgary CAN 5 37 15 4 40 145 32 47
Canberra AUS 35 81 45 75 30
Cape Town ZAF 95 97 77 86 53 103 122 37 178 109 95 105
Caracas VEN 99 156 126 33 202
Cardiff GBR 100 38
Casablanca MAR 76 107 95 46 102 132 115 32 114 104 124
Changsha CHN 103 71
Charlotte USA 88 47
Chengdu CHN 90 87 101 82 42 28 84 134 72
Chennai IND 88 96 8 121 35 158 151
Chicago USA 16 48 8 40 57 44 52 45 64 49 59 12
Chișinău MDA 41 107
Chongqing CHN 102 75 42 112 148 67
Christchurch NZL 43
Cleveland USA 44 112
Cologne DEU 40 84
Colombo LKA 131 127 130 37 185 138
Conakry GIN 67 43 119 222
Copenhagen DNK 34 11 4 49 11 4 4 21 9 46 16 3 8 7 46
Cotonou BEN 113
Curacao CUW 50 71
Dakar SEN 124 124 55 120 131 27 56 163
Dalian CHN 118 47 79 90 40
Dallas USA 59 47 50 69 31 63 50
Damascus SYR 147 140 225
Dammam SAU 139 100
Dar es Salaam TZA 143 128 57 33 167 198
Delhi IND 28 37 101 89 62
Denver USA 10 53 32 49 45 58
Detroit USA 71 95 53 47 101 72
Dhaka BGD 142 91 133 48 155 139 32 40 217
Djibouti DJI 53 82
Doha QAT 32 68 62 150 107 87 34 130 47 110 23
Dongguan CHN 143 69 40
Douala CMR 125 138 23 133 27 66 197
Dubai ARE 6 17-18 27 38 45 15 69 48 42 63 74 29 6
Dublin IRL 26 20 16 46 10 5 22 68 5 41 44 39 40 33 48 33
Düsseldorf DEU 65 27 28 42 74 6 20 93
Edinburgh GBR 41 3 42 40 45
Edmonton CAN 38 76
Eindhoven NLD 10 41 19
Fort Lauderdale USA 148 46
Foshan CHN 142 24 72 39
Frankfurt DEU 10 28 24 29 12 43 54 25 7 43
Freetown SLE 136 147
Gaborone BWA 111 110 36 202 141
Geneva CHE 2 36 40 14 16 14 41 8 10 9 8
George Town CYM 29 67
Glasgow GBR 32 39 131 48 96
Gothenburg SWE 115 44 46
Guadalajara MEX 106 60 114 36
Guangzhou CHN 63 74 63 72 34 95 47 17 96 122 68
Guatemala City GTM 77 112 50 114 37 141 158
Hamburg DEU 17 17-18 14 18 44 80 19 40 51
Hamilton BMU 35 50 80 39
Hangzhou CHN 82 64 42 87 66
Hanoi VNM 98 36 107 39 139 89 155 87
Hanover DEU 47 88
Harare ZWE 62 132 135 141 210
Harbin CHN 126 83 39
Havana CUB 133 31 134
Hefei CHN 61 76 38
Helsinki FIN 56 3 60 13 2 3 97 43 16 47 56 5 31 6 68
Ho Chi Minh City VNM 107 41 97 104 7 106 116 40 143 153 88
Hong Kong CHN 28 9 42 6 33 54 35 47 2 70 71 41 42
Honolulu USA 55 37 23 45 43 37
Houston USA 8 51 32 39 116 55 56 52 75 51 66 39
Hyderabad IND 101 124 35 143 92
Islamabad PAK 27 199
Istanbul TUR 114 82 36 34 88 67 109 108 48 173 79 130 21
Jakarta IDN 127 94 70 118 34 82 108 119 39 104 100 142 91
Jeddah SAU 85 122 98 113 35 94 168
Jinan CHN 55 84 38
Johannesburg ZAF 89 92 55 79 65 126 86 36 184 102 96
Kampala UGA 126 129 54 171 172
Kansas City USA 109 47
Kaohsiung TWN 123 53 42
Karachi PAK 138 117 145 151 137 37 201 201
Kathmandu NPL 51 142 129
Khartoum SDN 148 140 148 91 152 23 227
Kiev UKR 135 89 89 29 94 118 36 149 173 82 87
Kigali RWA 175 191
Kingston JAM 137 132 136 32 165 152
Kinshasa COD 130 153 28 41 223
Kobe JPN 138 49
Kolkata IND 100 119 148 33 181 160
Krakow POL 57 80 100
Kuala Lumpur MYS 69 67 39 58 65 134 89 78 40 152 92 85 74
Kunming CHN 87 90 39
Kuwait City KWT 67 95 107 95 85 37 115 77 126 86
Kyoto JPN 45
La Paz BOL 80 97 59 113 26 189 156
Lagos NGA 120 112 142 61 127 154 138 31 19 212 115
Lahore PAK 127 142 35 207
Las Vegas USA 49 22
Leipzig DEU 41 138 60
Libreville GAB 110 116 65 20 166
Lima PER 48 85 69 63 123 80 35 150 88 124
Limassol CYP 46 156
Lisbon PRT 54 62 52 29 23 39 73 54 42 83 48 37 95 53
Liverpool GBR 39
Ljubljana SVN 55 30 17 38 126 43 74
Lomé TGO 2 136
London GBR 39 1 1 2 12 7 19 5 1 48 51 18 33 41 22 1
Los Angeles USA 20 45 19-20 7 41 146 62 50 50 20 65 66 31 9
Luanda AGO 140 147 146 144 28 123 199
Lusaka ZMB 133 126 68 73 127 208 150
Luxembourg LUX 3 74 21 13 11 24 42 63 4 18
Lyon FRA 46 6 30 40 100 40 39 74
Macau CHN 25 41 55 19 39
Madrid ESP 31 21 6 16 25 28 37 39 47 67 28 46 34 10
Makassar IDN 153 100
Málaga ESP 38
Managua NIC 132 125 130 196 180
Manama BHR 47 129 100 103 33 71 136
Manaus BRA 127
Manchester GBR 29 69 35 41 26 94
Manila PHL 121 95 67 121 38 117 103 38 78 108 137 102
Maputo MOZ 146 134 179 183
Marseille FRA 23 38 83 77
Mecca SAU 150 99
Medan IDN 99
Medellin COL 154 37 101
Medina SAU 149 12 101
Melbourne AUS 18 56 23 18 8 8 14 2 48 59 34 17 19 37
Memphis USA 31 43
Mexico City MEX 97 79 37 38 87 40 33 116 111 42 152 98 129 108 97
Miami USA 63 25 30 44 70 44 50 48 66 27
Milan ITA 42 48 19 34 70 44 46 45 36 68 41 81 29
Minneapolis USA 66 38 39 86 61 72
Minsk BLR 35 197 90
Monrovia LBR 69 112
Monterrey MEX 104 134 36 183 113
Montevideo URY 74 56 29 67 34 132 76 78
Montreal CAN 22 31 27 29 9 12 19 129 26 21 38 41
Morristown USA 18 75
Moscow RUS 78 58 20 58 30 62 33 68 48 62 59 167 54 4
Mumbai IND 128 93 34 53 122 42 26 110 117 39 78 107 154 90
Munich DEU 4 7 24 6 8 119 3 25 47 52 12 3 14 28
Muscat OMN 51 115 84 104 90 34 108 105 78
N’Djamena TCD 79 13 226
Nagoya JPN 78 89 35 45 34 71 62
Nairobi KEN 102 96 90 131 52 90 112 122 34 145 110 186 113
Nanjing CHN 86 63 42 27 140 64
Naples ITA 56
Nashville USA 48 92
Nassau BHS 43 68 66 29 112
New Delhi IND 122 89 56 123 47 130 112 117 162
New Orleans USA 61 1 44 85
New York USA 7 14 2 1 22 27 18 57 54 14 38 44 12 2
Newark USA 45
Newcastle GBR 41 21
Niamey NER 64 99 218
Nice FRA 38
Nicosia CYP 126
Ningbo CHN 122 74 43
Nouakchott MRT 176 221
Nouméa NCL 65 93 128 66 32 110
Nur-Sultan KAZ 132 96
Nürnberg DEU 20 134 23
Oakland USA 45
Orlando USA 48 45 48
Osaka JPN 60 35 31 54 36 3 48 23 44 58 86 52
Oslo NOR 40 8 54 26 3 1 46 27 49 55 7 25 3 57
Ottawa CAN 25 41 156 8 19 67
Ouagadougou BFA 139 150 145 216
Panama City PAN 45 69 3 96 32 117 97
Paris FRA 38 15 26 3 20 10 7 56 2 19 51 33 32 39 61 3
Perth AUS 57 50 17 14 45 63 21 89
Philadelphia USA 52 24 43 61 48 54 85 60
Phnom Penh KHM 43 84 125 125 196
Phoenix USA 69 79 60 47 62 55
Pittsburgh USA 60 32 45 110 59
Pointe-à-Pitre GLP 107
Port au Prince HTI 149 149 92 228
Port Louis MUS 30 182
Port Moresby PNG 150 141 136
Port of Spain TTO 100 120 30 91 147
Portland USA 106 66
Porto PRT 108
Porto Alegre BRA 116 52 131 38
Prague CZE 36 23 50 1 18 27 51 60 43 90 13 69 78 19
Providence USA 137 45
Puebla MEX 133 135 139 32
Pune IND 123 110 141 33 143
Qingdao CHN 105 152 87 97 40 34 146
Quanzhou CHN 144 68 40
Québec CAN 41
Quito ECU 87 91 105 34 161 95 122
Rabat MAR 30 152 103
Raleigh-Durham USA 125 43 99
Recife BRA 125 136 37
Riga LVA 36 76 40 97 54 90
Rio de Janeiro BRA 92 84 44 72 82 138 88 44 191 106 118 118 81
Riverside USA 74 43
Riyadh SAU 73 73 114 38 97 108 36 29 164 30 61
Rome ITA 71 40 32 37 44 40 49 55 44 47 74 56 112 11
Roseau DMA 112 117
Rotterdam NLD 27 12 44 24 27
Sacramento USA 43 95
Saint-Denis REU 58 75
Salt Lake City USA 124 45 98
Salvador BRA 120 135 38
San Antonio USA 47
San Diego USA 11 47 30
San Francisco USA 14 16 13 13 28 25 49 25 42 34 60 14
San José CRI USA 86 78 73 124 108 64
San Juan PRI 85 106 89 30 89 92
San Salvador SLV 118 130 34 169 175
Santa Ana-Anaheim USA 58 45
Santiago CHL 53 77 45 62 64 65 63 41 108 93 93 110
Santo Domingo DOM 123 113 40 173 135
Sao Paulo BRA 82 78 43 42 77 115 93 177 94 119 117 44
Sarajevo BIH 42 34 186
Seattle USA 13 19 12 45 46 17 52 46 51 67 14 46 43 40
Seoul KOR 42 13 38 17 27 22 10 31 59 52 11 49 77 13 24
Shanghai CHN 61 76 21-22 12 59 26 131 30 81 51 6 99 103 71 73
Shenyang CHN 128 72 80 40 61 158
Shenzhen CHN 99 66 75 102 9 26 82 49 12 97 132 65
Singapore SGP 11 4 11 9 16 10 37 53 7 46 25 1 7
Skopje MKD 108 83 34 192 161
Sofia BGR 93 60 38 79 38 165 72 116 107
St. John’s ATG 90 98
St. Louis USA 78 103 70
St. Petersburg RUS 79 73 80 81 41 77 119 50 174 79 16
Stockholm SWE 62 2 14 39 36 9 2 6 32 50 72 15 23 25 59
Stuttgart DEU 140 43 102 27 80
Surabaya IDN 135 156 119
Surat IND 146 147 30
Suva FJI 104 109 92
Suzhou CHN 98 15 45 74 42
Sydney AUS 27 34 10 11 18 9 5 53 31 36 11 18 25
Taichung TWN 49 40 101
Taipei TWN 68 24 44 85 24 58 49 22 6 84 4
Tallinn EST 59 48 29 44 132 22 86 56
Tampa USA 72 155 43
Tangshan CHN 145 85
Tashkent UZB 121 203 203
Tbilisi GEO 75 57 36 207 187
Tegucigalpa HND 119 137 45 105 30 188 189
Tehran IRN 115 108 135 51 150 128 32 199
Tel Aviv ISR 64 31 51 51 48 76 44 15 57 104 42 45
The Hague NLD 93 43 23
Tianjin CHN 83 94 67 77 42 26 111 70
Tirana ALB 4 31 152
Tokyo JPN 52 33 4 5 6 20 7 7 56 4 39 49 84 5
Toronto CAN 12 30 19-20 19 4 12 8 7 47 98 35 16 36 13
Tripoli LBY 111 134 218
Tunis TUN 129 111 111 125 106 31 206 103 114
Turin ITA 35 73
Ulaanbaatar MNG 44 36
Ulan Bator MNG 105 108
Valencia ESP 41 69
Valletta MLT 42 39 67
Vancouver CAN 19 26 29-30 41 17 28 6 43 93 3 33 34
Victoria SYC 117 94 25 159 98
Vienna AUT 9 5 7-8 22 3 1 16 19 1 49 37 2 1 11 32
Vilnius LTU 33 64 37 143 52 81
Warsaw POL 44 54 61 43 14 31 14 32 65 43 164 56 82 75 71
Washington, D.C. USA 39 10 58 37 51 11 53 35 20
Wellington NZL 21-22 44 94
White Plains USA 65
Windhoek NAM 106 99 204
Winston-Salem USA 94 44 151
Wuhan CHN 93 144 66 37
Wuxi CHN 138 96 59 42
Xi’an CHN 100 143 78 41 85 145
Yangon (Rangoon) MMR 137 149 111 104 203
Yantai CHN 141 81
Yaoundé CMR 49 193
Yerevan ARM 32 99 195 170
Yokohama JPN 83 41 44
Zagreb HRV 84 92 52 32 93 36 140 69 98
Zaragoza ESP 121 15
Zhengzhou CHN 121 88 38 82
Zhuhai CHN 30 38 63
Zurich CHE 1 27 9 31 2 13 5 13 11 5 1 2 2 36

CAI

Global 150 Cities Attractiveness Index

A ranking combining various qualitative factors to assess the overall attractiveness of global cities.

Source: AIRINC Associates for International Research, Inc. (https://www.air-inc.com/global-150/#global-150-index)
CCC

International Cities Construction Costs 2021

An index showing the relative costs of construction covering twenty building functions for 100 global cities.

Source Arcadis (https://media.arcadis.com/-/media/project/arcadiscom/com/perspectives/global/2021/international-constructions-costs-2021/arcadis-international-construction-cost-index-2021.pdf)
CCI

Cities of Choice Index 2021

The ranking of 45 global cities as a system of objective, human-centric assessment to benchmark their achievements.

Source: BCG (https://web-assets.bcg.com/d0/cf/2204a0c145bd8e7ad591e60152d2/bcg-cities-of-choice-june-2021-v5.pdf)
CCL

2020 Global Cities Report

A ranking of 151 global cities measured and scored against 29 metrics and five dimensions.

Source: Kearney (https://www.kearney.com/documents/20152/60890709/Global+Cities%E2%80%94new+priorities+for+a+new+world.pdf)
CLI

City Lifestyle Index

Ranking of 150 of the top global cities according to the inherent social and lifestyle benefits they offer.

AIRINC Associates for International Research, Inc.  (https://www.air-inc.com/global-150/#global-150-index)
CPI‎

City Prosperity Index

A ranking of 69 global cities across five dimensions and six major components to calculate their prosperity.

Source: UN-Habitat (https://data.humdata.org/dataset/city-prosperity-index-and-the-components-of-its-5-dimensions/resource/37eb60ad-43c3-46af-9154-8ba695e07411)
ECI

European Cities SDG Index 2019

A ranking of the total progress of 45 major European cities towards their achieving all 17 UN SDGs.

Source: Cambridge University Press (https://euro-cities.sdgindex.org/#/)
GCI

Global Cities Index

A comparative indicator of the state of corruption in 196 countries and territories based on 43 variables.

An index ranking the competitiveness of 156 cities across five dimensions and various qualifying factors. 

Source: Kearney (https://www.kearney.com/global-cities/2021)
GCO

Global Cities Outlook

A ranking of 156 cities measured across four dimensions and 13 indicators of their potential for long-term success.

Source: Kearney (https://www.kearney.com/global-cities/2021)
GLI

The Economist Global Liveability Index 2019

Ranking of 140 cities worldwide for their urban quality of life based on their assessment.

Note: The EIU failed to provide the The Global Liveability Index 2021 we requested for ranking updating.

Source: Economist Intelligence Unit
ICI

Top 100 Innovation Cities™ Index 2021

A ranking of the top 100 innovate global cities based on cutting-edge scientific city-level data techniques.

Source: 2thinknow (https://www.innovation-cities.com/city-rankings-2021/)
LCI

Cost of Living City Ranking 2021

A ranking of 209 cities worldwide in terms of the comparative costs of more than 200 items in each location.

Source: Mercer (https://www.mercer.com/content/dam/mercer/attachments/private/gl-2021-cost-of-living-city-ranking-mercer.pdf)
PIR

1st Annual PICSA Prosperity Index Report

An inclusive city development index (ICI) of 113 cities that considers prosperity, social inclusion and spatial inclusion.

Source: PISCA (https://www.picsaindex.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/Creating-an-Inclusive-Prosperity-Cities-Index-final-PICSA-report_Nov2019.pdf)
QCL

Quality of Living City Ranking 2019

A ranking of 231 cities across the world indicating differences in the quality of living factors.

Source: Mercer LLC (https://mobilityexchange.mercer.com/insights/quality-of-living-rankings)
SCI

Smart City Index 2021

A ranking of the perceptions of 120 residents in each of 118 global cities on issues related to structures and available technology applications.

Source: IMD – International Institute for Management Development (https://www.imd.org/globalassets/wcc/docs/smart_city/smartcityindex2021.pdf)