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LONDON/KARACHI: Karachi has been named as one of the least liveable cities of the world. 

According to a report by Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), the research division of The Economist Group, Karachi has maintained its 134th rank in the listing of 140 cities.

Being ranked according to the cities’ qualitative and quantitative factors, the report is based on categories of infrastructure, healthcare, stability, education, culture and environment in which Karachi has managed to secure a place only better than that of Port Moresby, Dhaka, Tripoli, Lagos and Damascus.

“The ongoing weakening of global stability scores has been made uncomfortably apparent by a number of high-profile incidents that have shown no signs of slowing in recent years. Violent acts of terrorism have been reported in many countries, including Australia, Bangladesh, Belgium, France, Pakistan, Sweden, Turkey, the UK and the US. While not a new phenomenon, the frequency and spread of terrorism have increased noticeably and become even more prominent”, says The Global Liveability Report of 2017.

Cities like Kabul, Baghdad and Aleppo – cities with ongoing conflicts are excluded from the report as the survey only includes cities or business centres that people might want to live in or visit. However, cities like Damascus which were relatively unstable in the past have been included based on the improving living conditions.

According to the report, a correlation exists among the cities that sit at the very top of the ranking. The cities that scored best tend to be mid-sized cities in wealthier countries with a relatively low population density that can foster a range of recreational activities without leading to high crime levels or overburdened infrastructure. Six of the ten top-scoring cities are in Australia and Canada, which have, respectively, population densities of 2.9 and 3.7 people per square kilometre.

Melbourne remains the most liveable city in the world for the seventh time in a row, while two other Australian and three Canadian cities have made it to the 10 most liveable cities.—NNI