Survey reveals Africa’s most expensive cities for expats

Two African cities – Luanda and Juba – are included in the top 10 of a recent ranking of the world’s most expensive cities for expatriates.

In the latest ECA International Cost of Living Survey, Angola’s capital Luanda features in third position, just behind Caracas (Venezuela) and Oslo (Norway), ranked in first and second places respectively. Luanda dropped one space from last year’s ranking.

The only other African city in the top 10 is South Sudan’s capital Juba (ninth).

To compile the ranking, ECA compared the costs of a basket of consumer goods and services commonly purchased by expats. Living costs for expats are influenced by the availability of goods, inflation and exchange rates.

This data is then used by companies to calculate the cost of living allowances for employees on foreign assignments.

According to ECA, the steep costs of importing and transporting goods into some African countries contribute to making them expensive for expats.

Other African cities featuring relatively high in the rankings are Brazzaville (12th), Libreville (14th), Pointe Noire (15th) and Kinshasa (19th). The continent’s cheapest location is Maseru in Lesotho.

Cities in countries such as Ghana, Namibia and South Africa have dropped in the global ranking due to their weak currencies, making them cheaper for employees being relocated there.

Most expensive locations in Africa for international assignees
Africa rank 2014LocationGlobal rank 2014Global rank 2013
1Luanda32
2Juba94
3Brazzaville1218
4Libreville1430
5Pointe Noire1524
6Kinshasa1919
7Abidjan3046
8Dakar3347
9N'Djamena4159
10Abuja4239
11Conakry4382
12Lagos4540
13Cameroon5281
14Malabo5392
15Cotonou91114
16Ouagadougou95138
17Port Harcourt9995
18Bamako105127
19Dar es Salaam148164
20Antananarivo152136
21Maputo154120
22Harare155151
23Niamey163196
24Khartoum171146
25Kampala175198
26Nairobi176194
27Kigali182170
28Rabat191212
29Addis Ababa193204
30Casablanca196219
31Nouakchott202208
32Port Louis209222
33Lusaka210201
34Accra214174
35Algiers220225
36Cairo227246
37Lilongwe228235
38Tunis235242
39Tripoli236240
40Blantyre237249
41Gaborone253255
42Pretoria254234
43Johannesburg256252
44Windhoek258254
45Cape Town259256
46Durban260258
47Mbabane261257
48Maseru262260