Angola’s capital, Luanda, is projected to overtake Lagos as Sub-Saharan Africa’s most populous city by 2050, with its inhabitants anticipated to rise by 78% over the following 25 years, in accordance to the World Bank.
The projection is contained within the financial institution’s report, Sub-Saharan Africa’s Urban Awakening: Catalyzing Economic Growth and Job Creation, edited by Mark Roberts and Emily M. Owen.
The report estimates that Luanda’s inhabitants will improve from 11.4 million in 2025 to 20.3 million in 2050, whereas Lagos is anticipated to develop by greater than 25% over the identical interval, from 12.8 million to 16.2 million.
Luanda leads Africa’s city progress
The World Bank mentioned inhabitants progress will reshape the rating of Sub-Saharan Africa’s largest cities by 2050, with Luanda recording one of many most important will increase.
- Between 2025 and 2050, the lender famous “The population of Angola’s capital city, Luanda, is projected to increase by 78 percent from 11.4 million to 20.3 million. In doing so, Luanda will overtake Lagos as SSA’s most populous city”.
Lagos, nonetheless, will stay among the many area’s largest city centres, with its inhabitants projected to attain 16.2 million by 2050.
- Among the opposite 11 cities anticipated to stay within the area’s 15 most populous by 2050, projected inhabitants progress ranges from 21% in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo, to 70% in Yaoundé, Cameroon.
- The report additionally recognized Bamako, Mali, and Mogadishu, Somalia, as two cities anticipated to enter the highest 15 by 2050.
Bamako’s inhabitants is projected to improve by 80%, from 4.2 million in 2025 to 7.6 million in 2050, whereas Mogadishu is anticipated to develop by 64%, from 4.4 million to 7.2 million.
Cape Town, South Africa, and Kano, Nigeria, are projected to depart the highest 15 rating, though their populations are nonetheless anticipated to improve by 36% and 31%, respectively.
Lagos pursues $1 trillion economic system
Despite the projected change in inhabitants rating, Lagos stays certainly one of Africa’s main financial centres.
However, the World Bank cautioned in its May 2025 Nigeria Development Update, Building Momentum for Inclusive Growth, that the nation’s financial progress fee would want to improve about fivefold to obtain the nationwide goal by the top of the last decade.
The financial institution’s warning was detailed in an earlier Nairametrics report on the feasibility of Nigeria’s $1 trillion economic system ambition.
