Dubai will overtake London as “the centre of the world” by the year 2100"

Dubai will overtake London as "the centre of the world" by the year 2100, a government expert told delegates at the opening day of the Government Summit in Dubai on Monday.

Dr. Hans Rosling, co-founder of Gapminder, made the prediction while speaking on the topic, 'The Big Data Revolution: Tranforming Raw Data into Future Insights' and based his analysis on data from emerging trends in population growth.

Out of the current 7 billion people in the world today, 1 billion live in the Americas, 1 billion in Africa, 1 billion in Europe and 4 billion in Asia, Dr. Rosling said.

Analysing UN data on population, Dr. Rosling estimated that by 2050 Europe's population will take severe hit in the absence of new births. At the same time, Asia would experience 25 per cent growth in population while in Africa the growth would be 100 percent.

"By year 2100, America would have less than 10 percent of the world's population while 80 percent of the population would be in Africa and Asia. The surge in population growth in Africa and Asia would make Dubai the centre of the world by 2100," Dr. Rosling predicted.

Providing further insights based on available data, Dr. Rosling said the world is also seeing conditions improve for children. "While in the 1800s a couple had on the average eight children of which only four survived as a result of harsh living conditions, by 1900s out of six children four survived. However, the new balance in 2012 shows every couple having only two children with both the children surviving," he said.

The world over, in all countries, two-child families has become the norm. "Families and governments are today keen on supporting the young population with education and better facilities. The emerging market of the world is the young couple in any country with their ambitions and dreams. These young couples are the driving force behind the changes in the world," Dr. Rosling said.

Dr. Rosling commended the UAE for making rapid strides in reducing infant mortality and moving to the forefront of development in a short period of time.

"The UAE has modernised the country to achieve the latest developments in every field while at the same time keeping its traditions and values alive," Dr. Rosling said.

Organised under the theme 'Shaping Future Governments', the Government Summit in Dubai is being held from February 9 to 11, 2015, to discuss the future of government services in the world.