Bari is the second largest continental city of Southern Italy, with a population of 328,458 (2001) along 116 sq. km. It serves as the capital of the Apulia (or Puglia) region, on the Adriatic Sea, and also as the capital of the Province of Bari.

In the 1990s the population in the city saw a consistent decrease, according to the national trend, in favour of the towns in the first metropolitan ring. It was necessary to institute the Metropolitan Area: today the project is underway, with 12 towns who already opted to be in, for a total of around 600,000 inhabitants.