Africa's ten most expensive cities

Abuja, the Nigerian capital, is one of Africa's most expensive urban centers and while on a visit Nelson Mandela is reported to have said 'Why bother to visit Europe - you'll find it all here!'

Mercer compared the prices of 200 goods and services, including the cost of accommodation, public transport, household goods, food, clothing and leisure activities in order to come up with its table of rankings. Guinea's capital Conakry is one of Africa's ten most expensive cities, though on visiting some districts you might find that hard to believe.

Almost two million people live in Mali's capital, Bamako. Foreign firms and aid agencies have bases there because of the various humanitarian crises affecting the country and its neighbors. These foreign organizations compete with one another for scarce Western-standard accommodation, driving up prices.If you rent a house, you'll probably have to pay for the security guards.

The city's landmarks may have been refurbished but other parts of Brazzaville, capital of Congo Republic, still bear highly visible scars from the civil war (1997-1999). Only the well-off can cope with the prices in Brazzaville, where a cola can cost four times as much as it does in Dubai.

Nigeria's commercial capital Lagos acts as a magnet for people from all over the country, rich and poor alike. Most of the wealthy live on the city's islands, which are also the destination for thousands of commuters as they drive to work. Traffic jams abound. 'It once took me four hours to cover 35 kilometers (22 miles)' said DW reporter Adrian Kriesch.

With some four million inhabitants, Kinshasa, capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo, is Africa's second biggest city after Lagos. A luxury residential area - Citie du Fleuve - is being built on reclaimed land in the middle of the River Congo.'Foreigners have to pay a lot for their security,' said DW reporter Philipp Sandner, who lived in DRC for a year.

The West African nation of Gabon has a population of just half a million. It is rich in natural resources and has profited enormously from foreign aid. This is readily apparent in the capital Libreville. Night clubs have names such as Warhol, Hollywood or VIP. Gabon's 900 kilometer coastline is popular with European tourists.

Victoria is the capital of the Seychelles, which are located in the Indian Ocean. Prince William, second-in-line to the British throne, and his wife Kate spent their honeymoon in a beachside villa that reportedly cost $5,000 (3,750 euros) a night. For most Seychellois, it is an expensive place to live, however idyllic the scenery may be.

NDjamena is one of the most expensive cities in one of the world's poorest countries. There are no sea ports, railways and hardly any roads in the middle of the Sahel zone. Everything that foreigners buy in N'Djamena has to be flown in by air said DW reporter Tim Janszky, who lived for some years in Chad. 'From toilet paper to spare parts for cars - prices are steep,' he said.

Luanda, capital of Angola is not only the most expensive metropolis in Africa but in the whole world as well. Angola is Africa's biggest oil producer. Employees from multinational companies have been pouring into Luanda since the end of 2002. The few houses and flats that meet western standards fetch enormous prices. Rental costs of between 10,000 to 35,000 euros a month are not unusual.

Millions of Angolans live in slums. They cannot possibly afford the exorbitant prices that are demanded for goods and services in the capital Luanda and often have to live without electricity or running water. The gap between poor and rich continues to widen and this is a problem confronting most other large African cities.