Johannesburg has been selected as one of the top five cities in the latest PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) Cities of Opportunity in Africa report.

The report explains that the purpose of the analysis was to facilitate the decisions and actions of both investors and policymakers. PWC structured the report, as much as possible, around the critical issues of the business community, as well as those of the officeholders and other public authorities who are responsible for improving the collective life of each city examined. PWC only selected one city per country and this excluded some obvious candidates, such as Cape Town.

There were 29 variables classified into four categories (Infrastructure, Economics, Human Capital, Society and Demographics). Ranking was a result of city-specific and country factors, with some expected and some very surprising results. Johannesburg ranked first for airport connectivity, GDP/capital, financial services’ strength, power, literacy and numeracy, and political environment.

Overall summary table – Sum of all 29 variables

Some things considered to be major problems in South Africa (e.g. our poor education system and Eskom) are considered strengths in an overall African context.  South Africa’s pessimistic view of itself is evidently not shared by informed third parties, and South Africa is an integral part of the theme of African opportunity.

Taking this longer-term view of South Africa, and of Johannesburg in particular, suggests continual growth and this will underpin property prices in the future. Steyn City, with its emphasis on security, is perhaps an example of the promise that South Africa in general could hold if safety and security were more effectively managed by the state.

David de Waal (CA(SA))
CEO Steeple – The Low Commission Estate Agents