Nairobi is the most expensive city in Africa 2013

Ridiculous! You base this study on the cost of beer and wines? Why didn't you include sukuma wiki, tomatoes and maize flour! Also, please compare petrol prices in Nairobi with Kampala and Jo'burg! Nairobi residents cannot be enjoying a lower quality of life than Kampala. Kampala has numerous blackouts due to power rationing; their utilities companies (water, power) have not adopted e-payment; their urban road network is pathetic; their public transport sector is even worse than Nairobi's. only advantage there is no crime and cheaper food.

I agree with you partly that Nairobi has better infra than Kampala but the Ugandan capital has better security and cheaper food. Dar could soon overtake Nairobi in terms of infra ( public/ mass transit to be specific) once their Bus Rapid Transit ( BRT) and railway projects complete. Nairobi is doing too little - The Superhighway should have been built firstin the extremely busy, important & strategic Mombasa Road before thika road. bypasses construction still slow, rail development slow and selective, no BRT, cycle lanes or enough pedestrian walks, the important Ngong & Jogoo roads overwehelmed... Nairobi needs to develop more road routes within the city, especially North-South as East-West are catered for. We need direct roads bypassing town eg from Rongai to Westlands via Bomas, Msa Road to Kasarani via Hamza etc. Nairobi also needs to decentralise more services from CBD/ town centre and build small satellite towns (around 10) each having services like government offices ( provincial admin, land, trade, tax etc), utility services offices (electricity/ water/ sewerage), city council offices, markets, schools, hospitals, public transport termini, shopping malls, banks, colleges The government just needs to secure the land, build basic infra in these mini-towns and regulate how the private sector sets up the rest of the services. We need to regulate the maddening flow of people into the CBD fo non-esential things (or things that could be done in the neighbourhood) like banking or paying simple utility bills. All these town colleges located in a dinghy floor of dilapidated buildings need to b moved elsewhere. we also need to rework out public transport routes so that the CBD is not the nerve-centre. If I am using public ransport from Karen and my intention is to go to Muthaiga...I should not be taken to town as I have no business there.

 

 

True that. But also the better security in Kampala is basically to deter political protests and demonstrations, their press is also not very free and attacks on pro-opposition journalists common.But I agree on the infrastructure bit, and the biggest impediment is the City Council. Satelite towns like Rongai, Syokimau, Kahawa etc have not benefitted at all from the council's planning department. You end up with a mixture of high rise apartments and mansions and even reduce on the value of the land. Basic infrastructure like water and sewerage are not planned for and everyone ends up with a borehole (each deeper than their neighbour, despite drawing water from the same rock) and septic tanks. I guess their report was based on an expatriate's way of life. In that case, Nairobi is way expensive because of the location one must live and shop.

 

 

you are mixing the truth with false information and prejudice...typical moi era kenyan thinking...i would take public transport in Kampala any day but would not hop into a matatu, not even when its raining. I agree we have issues in Kampala but atleast we are not baying for each others blood simply based on tribal thinking. Open your eyes, we are your biggest trading partner and a little respect will come in handy.

 

 

I mentioned petrol prices (true); blackouts (true); e-payments (true); urban road network (true)...I guess you have a problem with public transport sector, huh? I travel the NBI-KLA road regularly and the top 4 bus companies are all from Kenya - Modern Coast, Mash, Easy Coach, Akamba (before their demise). By Kampala public transport, do you mean boda boda? Unlicensed, untrained riders that they are? I know you will talk about Pioneer...a noble idea that is slowly dying. I am not being prejudicial and the moi era comment is just uncalled for. I am basing my comment on this report that ranks Nbi as having poorer quality of life than KLA...and basing it on cost of beers and wines! I have a lot of love and respect for Uganda and KLA! Beautiful place and very friendly people.

 

 

Now who is mixing truth with false information? Hmmm, don't get emotional, it doesn't add any weights to your points. KLA is NOT pathetic, those are your words....I keep coming back for varied reasons - business; holidays and meeting friends and I repeat that it is a beautiful place with very nice people! The price of petrol is on average Ksh. 10 higher than UG (about UGX 300). Rent depends on where you want to live, KLA has very nice rentals, but located in very "bad" areas - characterized by poor transport infrastructure and other amenities. And you are right, this constitutes a % on the quality of life. Nairobi has more rental houses for the mid to lower income bracket.

Your comment on water is laughable and quite prejudicial. Ha ha you are quite amusing! Brown teeth is a consequence of fluorine in water, especially occuring in people living near rivers with a high content. By law, all boreholes in Kenya have to be sampled by the Government chemist and beyond certain parameters, treatment is a must! Boreholes, by the way, are more of a preserve for the rich in Nairobi, not cheap things! While Nairobi does experience blackouts, they are the exception rather than the rule. In KLA, even the power rationing schedule is not followed. Last week, downtown KLA had no power for 4 days! Food is more expensive in Nairobi and one of the reasons is because close to 60% of the populace shop in shopping malls and supermarkets as opposed to the 13% in KLA. KLA has well organized markets strategically placed, unlike Nairobi! FYI, Uganda is the most corrupt country in EA according to Transparency International...but from experience, the level of corruption in the police force in both countries is more or less the same! trust me that I face similar problems with a Kenyan registered vehicle in Uganda.

I know that business is evolving in Uganda (that's why i visit so often) and I am not even nasaying, I do actualy wish the evolution could be accelerated! There is so much at stake for both countries to benefit. Argue with facts my friend, discard emotion as it just erodes your very good points!

If Kampala is so pathetic as you say, why do keep flocking to the place? e-payments are available today in kampala, the price of petrol is not any different from Nairobi in dollar values +-a few cents, and this is also because of certain duties levied on the kenyan side. Rental prices are much lower in Kampala and fyi, this constitutes a big percentage of the cost of living and my view affects the quality of life. Access to clean water in kampala is far easier than Nairobi, all the bore holes are untreated and it shows from the teeth of the people in Nairobi, your water is laced with metalic components eating away at people's health, and if one cant by Keringet or some bottled water, they are in trouble. Nairobi too experiences blackouts, and electricity bills in Nairobi are higher than Kampala, translating to a higher cost of living, lower quality of life, food is too expensive in Nairobi...

Crossborder trade is affected by barriers created by your kenyan brothers, if i drive a ugandan number plate across the border to kenya, do you know how many times i will be stopped by Kenyan cops all looking for a bribe? In my opinion its better to meet hungry hyenas than meet a kenyan cop especially if you a ugandan driving a ugandan number plate...The cost of capital is high in Kampala but business is evolving and soon you will see Ugandan businesses growing stronger...for all naysayers, keep thinking your mother is the best cook, one day you will discover that there are better cooks..

I have been to Kla and its quite a nice place and the security is tops..the only thing I can say is I find a lot of similarities in present day Kla and Moi-era Nairobi..Kioks all over the place on rd reserves..potholes....its quite congested indeed..but all these can easily be overcome give the $$ available :)...and yes agreed am likely to die of hunger in Nai than in Kla...

Ugandan, u r crazy. U Ugandans just hype up your crap. U said Kenya had a career military, we went to Somalia n were done in a year, how long have Ugandans been there? U said u can beat us @ war, we downed those stupid helicopters just 2 give u the opportunity to start one, instead, the leader of ur ragtag militia army: m7 sacked a few clueless fellows. Epayment waz brought 2 UG, after it was successfully implemented in Kenya by Kenyans, chieth-ni. Heard of Equity Bank? Nakumatt Supermarkets? They r all Commercial entities owned by Kenyan Individuals. Heck even Major Media houses r Kenyan Businesses - The Nation Media Group: NTV, Daily Monitor etc. The only biz u pple can do in kenya is Grocery Vibandas. Impress urself 'Ugandan'

 

 

The issue of somalia is more complex than you think. from your one roomed appartment in kawangware, you keep reading the daily nation and you think the war is fought in the press, Ug went into somalia earlier becoz we foresaw what some politicians in Kenya didnt, till the war came home and then they scambled the army into Somalia. Onething you should know is that KDF victories should be saluted without ignoring the fact that KDF victories were only possible after a long sustained effort by the earlier AMISON forces that went into somalia. Capturing Kismayu is not in anyway comparable to pacifying mogadishu and the greater part of that country...so while you keep talking nonsense about downing the choppers, which we view as an accident becoz none in the Kenyan gov't ever voiced your view, we as Ugandans keep trying to live with your likes in peace but every now and then we encounter fools who have no regard for good neighbours. The Kenyan companies in Ug are there becoz Ug allowed them to operate and thus first credit should go to Ugandans for allowing your companies to have a piece of the pie...however i take it that you only speak for a few thugs but not the entire Kenyan nation.

 

 

Now i doubt that u r even Ugandan n if u are, u have lived in Kawangware all ur life, most probably "Satellite-Kwa Museveni" Where I hear Ugandans, Rwandese, Burundians n Congomanis like to stay, where they stay in our "Tribal Bickering Infested Country" as they wait for over 10 years for the UN to send them to Norway, Canada or wherever as refugees escaping their countries which don't have such silly problems as tribalism. If u r in Kenya by the way, turn on ur Palitto or TV there is a major debate from 6.30 today that i know Uganda will only have after another 10 coups.

 

 

I like to have a healthy discussion with an intelligent person but machette wielding fools talking about presidential debates is a paradox, so u listen to the debate then tomorrow you call for your neighbour's blood becoz he has a divergent view from yours? Look on the inside anthony, the solution is not in the presidential debate, the solution will only come after fools like you repent and are turned into normal human beings. The Ug problem is centred around one man, M7 and once we get him out of the way like some foward thinking kenyans did with Moi, Ug will fly..my worry is that we have some remnants of moi in you, these are the antagonists and we shall exorcise these demons till our neighbours are free.

 

 

We can live comfortably without Uganda. Can Uganda? Nkt, Think b4 uropokwe we champara. As if UG has no tribal issues. Baganda in Kampala with their "Kingdom" issues, The marginalization of nilotes in the north, political domination by Banyankole (By the way I hear ur prezo is Rwandese, not even Ugandan) We r better off coz we r fighting n sorting each other it out now, you haven't even started clearing ur tribal issues yet u've had already had amil wars n coups. For ur info, Uganda is not even where kenya waz in Moi era. And Kampala will only be like Nairobi in 100 years. First, think of how n when u will be dislodging m7 from power.

 

 

I kind of like your thinking. try to look at the numbers...where will you sell your Kimbo, Blue band etc..? what will become of KCB, Nakumatt, and all Kenyan companies in Ug? Do you know how many Kenyan traders rush to Ug, whenever you guys have famine? where will you buy cheap grain in the next famine? While Ug solely relies on Kenya for the main purpose of transiting goods from the coast to Ug, we are exploring the Tz alternative becoz we are tired of disruptions whenever you guys are sorting your tribal issues....look at KPA and how this small institution bullies entire economies of Ug, Rwanda, Burundi and Eastern DRC, someone wakes up and just introduces certain fees on all goods to these countries...it is such unfair policies that make this EAC unworkable and whenever the southern route takes shape, you can count on Ug to slowly but surely migrate our trade routes to the south, am just wondering what kind direction kenya would have with this kind of reasoning. Time will tell but it's your kind that should never be in any position of leadership, not even in a marriage becoz you will run that institution aground.

 

 

Excuse me please am I the only one that agrees with this survey? Nairobi has indeed become a very expensive place to do business. As someone who has traveled across Africa and the rest of the world and having explored life in various cities in Africa and globally I must say that Nairobi must rank somewhere amongst the top 3 most expensive cities in the world. Lets not be in denial, perhaps those that are responding here live a very comfortable lifestyle and dont feel the economy pinching their pockets but for me and many other Kenyans in the middle class and those in the lower segments of society, Nairobi is becoming almost unlivable. Many are moving to other towns and cities to do business and so there must be something amiss in Nairobi. Look at the cost of housing for example, the cost of personal security, the cost of food and the burden of extended family and workers on those that are fortunate to have a steady income. Please people lets be real!

 

 

This is propaganda - these surveys are published to erode confidence and keep away foreign investors. And why now?
In my view it could have been more useful to base the survey on parameters such as food, house and office rents, hotel accommodation, cost of registering business. And even if one was to base it on fuel, wines and spirits - experience from Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Angola, tells a different story.

 

 

This is propaganda - these surveys are published to erode confidence and keep away foreign investors. And why now, why at this time? In my view it could have been more useful to base the survey on parameters such as food, house and office rents, hotel accommodation, cost of registering business. And even if one was to base it on fuel, wines and spirits - experience from Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Angola, tells a different story.