According to the latest Global Livability Index 2023 published by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), Karachi, Pakistan’s largest city, has been classified as one of the top five ‘least livable’ urban centers globally. Out of the 173 cities assessed, Karachi is positioned at a challenging 169th place, with only Lagos, Algiers, Tripoli, and Damascus receiving lower rankings. This means that you might be believing that Karahi is getting extremely unlivable but now it’s officially announced.
However, what sets Karachi apart is its unique but disappointing representation as the sole Pakistani city featured in this index. The EIU’s comprehensive analysis primarily focuses on evaluating cities’ post-Covid recovery, examining various crucial aspects of living conditions. These include:
- Stability
- Healthcare
- Culture and Environment
- Education
- Infrastructure
These results highlight the significant room for improvement in Karachi’s overall livability, emphasizing the pressing need to address challenges and enhance the city’s quality of life for its residents.
Marking Criteria
The livability factors were evaluated on a scale of 1-100 and Karachi falls short with a score of 42.5. To assess the livability factor, scores ranging from 1 to 100 are compiled and analyzed, where 1 represents an intolerable living condition and 100 signifies an ideal situation.
Living Standard
In the case of Karachi, it obtains an overall score of 42.5, which indicates a below-ideal living standard. Notably, the city’s performance is notably weak in terms of stability, receiving a score of 20, similar to the previous year, suggesting minimal improvement in this aspect. The healthcare sector receives a score of 50, the culture and environment score of 38.7, education at 75, and infrastructure at 51.8.
Track Record
When examining the historical data on Karachi’s rankings in the EIU’s index, the city’s track record is far from satisfactory. In 2019, Karachi held the 136th position out of 140 cities surveyed, and no report was published for the year 2020. In 2022, it marginally improved to the 134th position out of 140 cities.
It is worth noting that the top-ranked cities on the index predominantly hail from Western Europe and Canada. The capital of Austria, Vienna, secures the first position for the second consecutive year, achieving a perfect score of 100 on four out of the five indicators but unfortunately, Karachi is now officially “unlivable”.
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