Windhoek
Windhoek and Cape Town are the world’s least expensive cities for expatriates to live in, but Angola’s Luanda is still one of the world’s most expensive cities, even though this year it slipped to number two position on the global list because of the weakening of the local currency.
Hong Kong is now the world’s most expensive city for expats, leapfrogging Luanda in the annual chart compiled by consultancy firm Mercer, and released yesterday. Luanda had previously consistently topped the list in recent years.
Despite dropping off the top spot on the global list, Luanda remains the highest ranking city in Africa in terms of expensiveness. Kinshasa follows at number 6 on the African list, rising seven places since 2015.
Moving up one spot, N’Djamena is the next African city on the list at number 9, followed by Lagos, Nigeria at number 13 which is up seven places. Congo’s Brazzaville is also ranked among the top 30 expensive cities in the world at number 23. Zimbabwe’s Harare is ranked at 157, Tanzania’s Dar es Salaam at 174, Zambia’s Lusaka at 200 and Botswana’s Gaborone at 201.
To determine the cost of living in each city the research looks at, among others, the cost of rent along with the cost of a cup of coffee, a pair of decent jeans, a hamburger meal and a small imported beer.
According to the figures released by Mercer, rent for a two-bedroom apartment in a posh neighbourhood would cost US$6 809 (N$95 326) in Hong Kong, while in Luanda it costs US$6 700 (about N$93 000); US$5 100 (N$71 400) in New York, US$4 583 (N$64 162) in London and US$4 200 (N$58 800) in Moscow. In Windhoek a two-bedroom townhouse in an upper class suburb is advertised for an average rental price of US$1 300 (N$18 200).
Renting accommodation represents one of the largest costs, and to be suitable, a house or flat must be “safe and secure, of international standards” and located in “an appropriate neighbourhood”.
At 209, Windhoek dropped three spots down to the bottom of the list, from the 2015 ranking, and is now the least expensive city in Africa and globally. South Africa’s Cape Town is ranked at 208 on the list. Other African cities among the group of least expensive are Blantyre, Malawi, which is ranked 206 in the world, and South Africa’s Johannesburg at 205.
Mercer said that rankings were affected by “volatile markets and stunted economic growth in many parts of the world”. Mercer is a global consulting leader in talent, health, retirement and investments.
Zurich and Singapore were third and fourth on the list, unchanged from a year ago. Tokyo rose to fifth. Kinshasa, in Democratic Republic of Congo, is ranked sixth, appearing in the top 10 for the first time, followed by Shanghai, Geneva, Chad’s N’Djamena, and Beijing.
The survey is designed for companies to calculate expat workers’ allowances.
It weighs the cost of living in 209 cities across the world, comparing the cost of more than 200 items in each location, including housing, transport, food, clothing and entertainment.
“Despite technology advances and the rise of a globally connected workforce, deploying expatriate employees remains an increasingly important aspect of a competitive multinational company’s business strategy,” said Ilya Bonic, Senior Partner and President of Mercer’s talent business.
“However, with volatile markets and stunted economic growth in many parts of the world, a keen eye on cost efficiency is essential, including a focus on expatriate remuneration packages. As organizations’ appetite to rapidly grow and scale globally continues, it is necessary to have accurate and transparent data to compensate fairly for all types of assignments, including short-term and local plus status,” he said.