Cape Town has been ranked as one of the top three African cities in Kearney’s Global Cities Report, which measures a city’s progress on a number of different fronts. The management consultancy firm analysed and compiled a ranked Global Cities Index (GCI), which makes use of a number of factors to determine the competitiveness of a city in terms of responses to unique urban challenges, and development and innovation.
The factors are based on five key areas. These include business activity, human capital, information exchange, cultural experience and political engagement and include common economic indicators, such as gross domestic product and how many start-ups the city has.
Johannesburg ranked the highest out of the African cities, at number 55. It is followed by Cairo, which placed at number 64, while Cape Town ranked the third-highest at number 77. Nairobi comes in at number 90, while Casablanca ranks at 107, Accra at 110, and Tunis at 111.
“North America still dominates, although many US cities face volatility and instability, as reflected by dramatic shifts in their positions. Chinese cities are the biggest risers, while Africa as a region remains stable, yet is sadly still by far the lowest-scoring region,” Kearney principal Prashaen Reddy said.
“Nonetheless, cities like Cape Town, Lagos and Nairobi have been identified as innovation ecosystem hotbeds, which will hopefully lead to more inclusive economies burgeoning across the continent.”
According to Reddy, it is “unsurprising” that most of the African cities analysed have actually dropped in rank. He attributes this to immense challenges such as the continent’s “unparalleled” pace of urbanisation compared to that of other continents.
“Indeed, initiatives like Amazon Web Services have spearheaded cloud-based infrastructural development and digital transformation in a meaningful way that offers cascading benefits for Africa’s economic outlook,” he added.
“In many African cities like Johannesburg, addressing spatial and economic inequality may be the most crucial project in terms of improving their global city status, as well as their overall resilience and capacity to weather future catastrophes.”
To read the full index, click here.
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