Cities of opportunity - what makes a city 'great'?

What makes a city great?  How can cities thrive economically and yet remain liveable?PwC and the Partnership for New York City have published the latest edition of Cities of Opportunity, a report which analyses the performance of 27 of the world's cities against ten broad social, economic and technological indicators.  As well as analysing the current situation, the report also looks forward to 2025 to consider future scenarios and key success factors.The cities analysed in the report currently account for 8% of world GDP but are home to only 2.5% of the world population.Healthy growth in a city relies on a combination of 'quality of life' factors (good education opportunities; healthcare; safety and housing) combined with strong business and solid infrastructure.The ten indicators used by PwC:

• City gateway
• Cost
• Demographics and liveability
• Economic clout
• Ease of doing business
• Health, safety and security
• Intellectual capital and innovation
• Sustainability and the natural environment
• Technology readiness
• Transportation and infrastructure

• Intellectual property protection (Singapore scores top points)
• Research performance at top universities (London rates highest - and three Asian cities appear in the top ten)
• Libraries with public access (Stockholm scores highest)

• Internet access in schools and Digital economy score (Stockholm is top in both of these)
• Broadband quality
• Software development