Nairobi emerges as Africa’s most expensive city

Kenya’s inflation rate stood at 6.68 per cent in February 2014. The report cites sharp rise in consumer prices attributed to the recent introduction value added tax. [GRAPH SOURCE: KNBS]

By Jevans Nyabiage

Kenya risks losing out to other cities as an investment hub with a new report naming Nairobi as Africa’s most expensive city. The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) survey that sampled eight African cities places Nairobi ahead of Côte d’Ivoire’s Abidjan. The report cites sharp rise in consumer prices attributed to the introduction of value added tax (VAT) in Kenya that has seen the cost of living increase sharply compared to the surveyed cities.