Even as emerging Asian cities like Manila, Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur and more have taken direction from the existing powerhouses of Seoul, Tokyo, Singapore and Hong Kong, future growth trends indicate a necessary split in the near term. Tokyo, the largest urban center in the world with a population of about 37 million, will start to experience population decline as early as 2045. On the other hand, the metro area of Manila is expected to more than double its 2010 population to over 23 million inhabitants by 2050.
It is expected that these emerging Asian urban centers will overtake existing developed Asian cities within the next few decades. The pressures of this population growth on the economy, particularly public transport, is immense. To resolve these issues, investment and private sector innovation is critical. The opportunities for businesses are not only in public transport, but in all infrastructure planning and construction, social systems, and other resident demands, and the need for a new paradigm is just beginning to present itself.
For instance, emerging urban centers are likely to leapfrog previous standards and technology to adopt new methods faster. Mobile payments in China and the success of homegrown ride hailing applications in China and South East Asia are good examples. In the example of Didi Chuxing, China’s largest ride-hailing app, the company took advantage of a “self-reinforced” eco-system of government incentive to promote domestic innovation, funding for entrepreneurial ventures, and the overall size of the Chinese market to compete aggressively and win against Uber, the international entrant.