Mombasa has outpaced Nairobi to emerge the 12th most expensive city in Africa to live in.
Nairobi had long been considered the icon of Kenya’s growing consumerism.
In a recent ranking of Africa’s cities in terms of consumer trends, the coastal city placed only second in East Africa, after Kampala. Nairobi ranks 14 in the index of Africa’s most expensive cities to live in.
The report released by the Economist’s Intelligence Unit (EIU) paints a picture of consumer spending patterns in African cities with Nairobi and Mombasa emerging as two of the top 20 strategic markets in the continent.
“Africa, previously viewed as a marginal location by mainstream investors and companies, is attracting the attention of corporate investors around the globe, not least because of its enviable growth rate,” said Robin Bew, EIU managing director.
The report states that while the world has traditionally looked at Cairo, Johannesburg and Cape Town as Africa’s heavyweight cities, new “underdog” cities are emerging from behind the scenes, demanding their share of foreign direct investment.
“Potential investors are not interested purely in national markets,” states Mr Bew. “Today there are already more than 50 African cities with populations of over a million people, and several cities larger than London. People in cities are easier to reach—and they spend more than their rural counterparts.”
The findings of the report mirror growth and expenditure trends recorded in African economies over the past 15 years, buoyed by improved infrastructure and a burgeoning middle class.
According to data from the African Development Bank (AfDB) Africa’s middle-class has grown three fold in the last three decades. More than 313 million people in Africa are now said to belong to this group.
This has presented a new and ready market for consumer goods with many multinational companies making a beeline for a slice of the pie.
