TORONTO: Calgary, Vancouver, and Toronto have ranked among the top ten most liveable cities in the world in the latest ranking by the Economist Intelligence Unit. The EIU ranks 140 cities based on a number of criteria, the five main factors being stability, healthcare, culture and environment, education and infrastructure.
Vienna took the top spot in the annual ranking to knock Melbourne down to second place after a seven-year run as the world’s most liveable city.
Calgary took fourth place to move up one spot from last year with top marks in stability, health care, education, and infrastructure while it lost marks in culture and environment.
Vancouver slipped three spots to come in sixth and Toronto moved from fourth to seventh after their points ranking on a scale of 100 remained the same while other cities improved.
Both cities lost points for infrastructure, while Vancouver was also docked points on stability and Toronto on culture and environment. Australia also counts three with Melbourne (second), Sydney (fifth) and Adelaide (10th). The list is rounded out with Osaka in third place, Tokyo splitting seventh place with Toronto, and Copenhagen in ninth.
Abidjan in Cote d’Ivoire and Vietnam’s Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City are among the cities to see the biggest improvement in the past five years.
The EIU reports that nearly half the cities in the survey saw increased ratings over 2017, with improved stability as the underlying factor. This is especially notable in European cities where high-profile terrorist attacks have shaken their stability.
India’s big cities are among its worst places to live in. In the Indian government’s Ease of Living Index 2018 released on Aug. 13, major cities like Delhi, Bengaluru, and Chennai ranked poorly on most parameters, including employment, health, pollution, and safety. Smaller cities such as Pune, Indore, and Chandigarh aced the ranking on basic amenities such as assured water supply, transport, health facilities and governance.
India’s capital city, home to 29 million people, ranked 65th. The world’s second-largest city was ranked last in terms of health. Over the years, Delhi’s alarming pollution levels have ravaged public health.