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Summary World's most densely populated place, located in Hong Kong, struggles to gain more breathing space.
The world is becoming a more crowded place as it is set to welcome the 7th billion human at the end of this month.But living with people all around you is part of Hong Kongers everyday life, especially those who live in a district that is in the Guinness World Records for being the worlds most densely populated place on earth.Mong Kok, which literally means busy corner in Cantonese, has on average 130,000 people squeezed inside one square kilometre -- equivalent to putting about 900 people inside a football pitch.From sunrise to sunset, crowds swarm into the commercial district, where shiny skyscrapers loom over its many street markets.District Councillor Paul Zimmerman, who co-founded the city planning company Designing Hong Kong, has put forward proposals asking the government to buy up private land and residences, to create more open spaces. However, he concedes that it is a difficult task.Although Mong Kok is one of the most popular shopping areas in Hong Kong, residents complain of air, noise and light pollution and the overstretched transport network -- which remains one of Mong Kongs biggest challenges as 90 percent of the citys journeys are taken on public transport. Zimmerman said the compact nature of city living has its pros and cons.The growth of Mong Kok came with the boom of Hong Kong after World War II when many people from mainland China settled in the then-British colony to avoid Chinas political upheavals and to try seek a better life.In the heart of Kowloon, across the Victoria Harbour from the financial centre on Hong Kong Island, Mong Kok was and still is a trading hub, bursting with shops, markets, stalls, and hawkers. Despite the citys density, Hong Kongs population growth appears to be on a plateau.The citys population approached 7.1 million at the end of last year, and climbed at a rate of 0.7 percent over the period of 2005 to 2010, according to government statistics. For Hong Kong residents, living near Mong Kok has its advantages as well as disadvantages.Hong Kongs neighbour, Macau, is also in the record books for the most densely populated territories, with nearly 20,000 people per square kilometres in 2010.Guangdong province on the southern coast of mainland China gained a spot in the Guinness World Records six years ago, when it overtook the provinces of Henan and Sichuan to become the countrys most populous province, with 79 million permanent residents and 31 million migrants.
