Provided by Mercer: 28/4/09
Australian and New Zealand cities continue to dominate worldwide quality of living standards, Mercer’s 2009 Worldwide Quality of Living Survey has found.
- Australia and New Zealand continue to make top rankings, joined by European cities
- Vienna tops Zurich and scores highest for overall quality of living; Baghdad the lowest
Major Australian and New Zealand cities rank amongst the world’s top 34 cities for overall quality of living and dominate the rankings within the Asia Pacific region.
Rob Knox, Head of Mercer’s information product solutions business, said the global financial crisis has meant many multinational organisations are looking to review their international assignments with a view to managing costs and our quality of living data helps them plan expatriate compensation packages and determine hardship allowances.
“Despite the financial crisis, Australia remains a very attractive market for expats – particularly as a career development opportunity for high potentials.
“Both Australia and New Zealand boast some of the most liveable cities in the world – which means we remain very attractive for ‘expat’ workers and this is good news for our economy.
“Cities with favourable rankings have the advantage of attracting expats in an environment where competition for key talent remains strong. In this environment, it remains essential for multinationals to ensure they place the right people where they want them,” Mr Knox said.
Mercer’s quality of living index helps multinationals and governments compensate employees relocating in the international job market based on the quality of living in the respective city.
Mercer’s analysis is based on an evaluation of 39 criteria for each city including political, social, economic and environmental factors, personal safety and health, education, transport and other public services. The survey covers 215 cities and cities are compared to New York as the base city, with an index score of 100.
All Australian and New Zealand cities ranked higher than New York
In Australia, Sydney, remained stable at 10th place, scoring 106.3 points; Melbourne ranked 18th (scoring 104.8 points); Perth held its position at 21st place (scoring 104.3); while Adelaide ranked 30th (scoring 103 points). Brisbane scored 102.4 points and remained stable at 34th place - still above New York, the base city.
New Zealand cities also ranked favourably. Auckland again scored among the world’s top five cities, this year moving up one place to 4th position and scoring 107.4 points, on par with Vancouver. Wellington held its position in 12th place, and scored 105.9 points.
Mr Knox said the results support a strong case for employers to continue sending expatriates to Australia to develop their operations, as well as grow their future leaders.
“At the same time, the fact that Australian cities have more or less remained stable presents a challenge to governments and planners to continue to improve our cities – standing still is not enough when competing for key talent and investment,” Mr Knox said.
“Economic growth in the Asia Pacific region is outstripping most other parts of the world. Multinationals can send their high performers down under to gain experience in a mature market, but on the door step of, and with exposure to, one the fastest moving regions in the world – while at the same time providing the benefits and security of living in Australia or New Zealand.
“Our major cities continue to tick all the boxes for expatriates who have access to established infrastructure and transport facilities, quality housing close to the city, a wide selection of restaurants and other amenities, as well as a good education and environment for their families,” he said.
Asia Pacific
Auckland (4) retains its position as the highest ranking city for quality of living in the region. Sydney follows at 10 and Wellington in New Zealand at 12. While the majority of the region’s cities retain a similar ranking to last year, Singapore (26) is the region’s highest riser, up six places since 2008. The city has gained importance as a financial centre and offers a wide range of international and private schools to cater to its expatriate community. Beijing has also moved three places in the ranking, up from 116 to 113, mainly due to improvements in public transport facilities from the Olympic Games last August.
Dropping down in the rankings, mainly due to a decline in stability and security are Bangkok
(from 109 in 2008 to 120) and Mumbai (from 142 to 148). Thailand’s political turmoil continued
throughout 2008 and 2009 with frequent and violent demonstrations and rallies taking place in Bangkok. Terrorist attacks in Mumbai have led to the city’s decline in quality of living for expatriates. Dhaka in Bangladesh holds the lowest ranking in the region at 205.
Mr Parakatil commented: “As a region, Asia Pacific is highly diverse. Recent political unrest and terrorist attacks in some cities in the region have negatively impacted the quality of living there. In addition to providing an appropriate hardship allowance, companies need to make sure they review their expatriate strategies by implementing specific safety measures such as ensuring their expatriates’ accommodation is under surveillance and providing effective channels of communication should evacuation be necessary.”
For city infrastructure, Singapore has the highest score world-wide (109.1). The city boasts an airport with excellent facilities and connections, as well as an efficient and extensive public transport network. Other high rankers in the region include Hong Kong (8), Sydney (11) and Tokyo (12). Dhaka ranks lowest in the region at 197.
Americas
There have been few changes in the rankings for North American cities. Canadian cities still dominate the top of the index for this region. Vancouver (4) retains the top spot and Honolulu (29) is the city in the United States with the highest quality of living. Washington and New York remain in positions 44 and 49 respectively.
In Central and South America, San Juan in Puerto Rico retains the highest ranking at 72, followed by Montevideo at 79. Port au Prince (206) in Haiti continues to rank lowest in the region and has gone down four places in the overall ranking due to food shortages experienced in 2008 and the subsequent riots.
Mr Parakatil commented: “A number of South and Central American countries have experienced positive changes. But on the whole, political and security issues, and the incidence of natural disasters, continue to hinder the improvement of quality of living in the region. Shortages of consumer goods have also contributed to a decline in quality of living in some cities.”
In terms of city infrastructure, Vancouver (6) again tops the ranking for the whole of the region, with Atlanta following in position 15. Santiago in Chile has the best city infrastructure in Central and South America, whereas Port au Prince is again the lowest ranking at 212.
Europe
Europe’s cities once more dominate the world’s top 10 for quality of living. Vienna is the city rated with the best quality of living worldwide, moving up one place in the rankings following improvements in Austria’s political and social environment. The rest of the top 10 for Europe are dominated by German and Swiss cities, most of them retaining last year’s ranking and scores. Zurich, in second place, is followed by Geneva (3), Dusseldorf (6), Munich (7), Frankfurt (8) and Bern (9).
Many Eastern European cities have seen an increase in quality of living. A number of countries which joined the European Union back in 2004 have experienced consistent improvement with increased stability, rising living standards and greater availability of international consumer goods. Ljubljana in Slovenia, for example, moves up four places to reach 78 while Bratislava moves up three places to 88. Zagreb moves three places to 103.
In the city infrastructure index, German cities fair particularly well with Munich (2) the highest ranked in the region, followed by Dusseldorf (6) and Frankfurt in joint eighth place with London. “German city infrastructure is amongst the best in the world, in part due to its first class airport facilities and connections to other international destinations” said Mr Parakatil.
London’s ranking in the infrastructure index reflects the high level of public services offered, with its extensive public transport network and wide variety of telecommunication services.
Middle East and Africa
Dubai (77) in the United Arab Emirates and Port Louis in Mauritius (82) are the region’s cities with the best quality of living. Dubai’s transport facilities have witnessed improvements, with the development of its road infrastructure and expansion of its international airport, and the city is up six places in the ranking.
Cape Town in South Africa, previously the city in the region with the best quality of living, has dropped substantially in this year’s ratings (from 80 to 87 in 2009). This move follows violent riots in South Africa’s main cities in 2008.
Baghdad (215) retains its position at the bottom of the table, though its index score has increased (from 13.5 to 14.4 in 2009) due to some slight improvements in its infrastructure and steps taken to encourage investment. Nevertheless, the lack of security and stability continue to have a large impact on quality of living and the city’s score remains far behind Bangui (29.3) in the Central African Republic, which is second to last.
In the city infrastructure index, most of the region’s cities rank below 100. The exceptions are Dubai (35),Tel Aviv (55) Jerusalem (70), Abu Dhabi (72), Port Louis in Mauritius (92) and Cairo (93). Baghdad (215) is again at the bottom of the list with a city infrastructure score of 19.6, while Port Harcourt in Nigeria is at 214, scoring 30.5.
Mr Parakatil continued: “Many countries on the African continent are experiencing continued political and economic unrest, making life for expatriates very difficult. This is generally reflected in the higher compensation and benefits packages offered there by multinationals, compared to other regions of the world.”
About this survey
The worldwide rankings are produced from the most recent Worldwide Quality of Living Survey, conducted by Mercer. Individual reports are produced for each city surveyed. Comparative quality of living indexes between a base city and a host city are available, as are multiple city comparisons.
Further information is available at mercer.com.au
This information has been prepared by Mercer (Australia) Pty Ltd ABN 32 005 315 917 for general information only. The information does not take into account your personal objectives, financial situation or needs. Therefore, you should not act on this information if you have not considered the appropriateness of this information to your personal objectives, financial situation and needs. You should consult a licensed or appropriately authorised financial adviser before making any investment decision.
