South Africa Among The Top 20 Cheapest Countries To Live in the World

This may not be the easiest of information to digest, but South Africa features in the top 20 cheapest countries one can live in worldwide. Why this may appear to be unreal given that South Africa is one of the most developed countries in Africa, one would think that the cost of living in such a country would be backbreaking, but it is actually not true. When compared to cities in the U.S like San Francisco, Newyork, or Boston, the margin is quite far. Even when compared to sister African countries its economic structure is quite impressive as it allows for a cheaper cost of living.

Generally, there are quite a number of factors that come to play to determine just how cheap or expensive a region or country might be. You can start by considering the government, if a country has massive potential but her leaders don’t know how too harness it to make life more comfortable for their citizens, then, the cost of living may be high. In the same vein, if the government of the said country is simply corrupt, chances are that monies meant for development are siphoned into frivolous spendings that do not have any positive effect on the citizens of such country and thus only benefitting an elite few.

On the other hand, it could be as a result of lack of an abundance of natural resources and thus the need to generate wealth for the country through higher taxation and other stringent means which could invariably lead to a hike in price and thus a higher cost of living. Take the United Kingdom, for instance, the country thrives more on taxation which in turn makes the United Kingdom one of the most expensive countries to live in.Many people are looking for places to relocate or travel to and one of the pertinent things on their mind is the cost of living. They would prefer that the cost be much lower except they are quite wealthy in a lot of ways. Whether looking to retire in a different country or simply moving to work and live in a country different from one’s own country of origin, they would only consider the chance if the living cost was relatively cheaper than back home.

If you are however thinking of getting the cheapest cost of living in the world then India should be in your mind. In a cost-of-living survey by Numbeo, the Asian giant emerged at the top of the cheapest countries in the world, beating out countries like Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, and Tunisia.

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Taking into account the price of about 50 items, including a wide variety of accommodation, food and drink from supermarkets and restaurants, clothing, taxi fares, leisure activities, utilities and internet and cell phone bills, the survey drew its conclusion.

Though the country still has a long way to go when it comes to infrastructure, India still topped the list with a cost of living index of 24.14, followed by Moldova, Pakistan, Kazakhstan, and Nepal. South Africa also made it to the top 20 at the 19th position.

Among the top 20 cheapest countries, India has the most World Heritage sites (32), Colombia has the highest life expectancy (79) plus the highest percentage of forested land (54%), Romania has the best average internet connection speed (12.8Mbps), Moldova has the fewest roads (9,352km).

Nepal has the cheapest restaurant meals and flats, while Cuba has the cheapest cinema tickets, public transport, and electricity for all its citizens to enjoy.

The country with the cheapest McDonald’s combo meal is Ukraine where natural disasters are least likely to occur, and Uganda is the country where you can get the cheapest pair of Levi’s 501s.

The survey also disclosed that Bosnia and Herzegovina are the least urbanized.

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On the reverse side of it, the most expensive place in which to live is Bermuda, which has a cost of living index of 133.68.

Making up the top 5 expensive countries in the world, we have Switzerland, The Bahamas, Norway, and Iceland. Then, of course, the UK comes 12th, Australia 13th, New Zealand 14th while the United States came 21st.

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Boity Banks
Boity Banks
Banks is a meat junkie, movie geek, and perfectionist. The thrill of travelling the world through writing and editing from the comfort of her desk and PC is what keeps her going most of the time. After office hours, you might catch her still writing at home or running some culinary experiments.

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