Johannesburg - If you are looking for an ideal city in which to retire, you might want to steer clear of Johannesburg. A new study has ranked it as one of the worst cities for retirement in the Middle East and Africa.
Data from the Best Cities for Retirement 2022 study, was revealed this week, and Johannesburg fared extremely poorly.
The study revealed the best and worst cities in the world for retired people, by analysing later life liveability, financial security, health care and wealth management.
Johannesburg ranked as one of the worst cities in the Middle East and Africa for quality of life for senior citizens, while those in Lagos ranked as having the worst quality of life. Nairobi and Cairo rated second and third worst.
Dubai offered the best living standards for retired people, followed by Abu Dhabi and Tel Aviv.
Retired people in Beirut experienced the lowest financial security, followed by Cairo and Istanbul, while those in Tokyo enjoyed the best living standards, followed by Wellington and Singapore.
Dubai was also the best city in the world for financial security and legacy management, followed by Singapore and Wellington.
The study, which was released by Veolar.com, a global leader in antioxidant production and distribution, in partnership with Magmatic Research, looked at principal factors that contribute towards a high quality-lifestyle for retired people, and physical and financial security.
The research looked into the infrastructure of each city; the quality of health-care services; how easy it was for a retired person to live in each location, by assessing the mobility options within the city parameters and the quality and availability of housing; how widely accessible high quality health care was; the quality of the public transport in each location, as well as determining how well-connected each city was to others.
Pablo Martinez, a researcher at Magmatic Research, said one of the key reasons Johannesburg ranked so low was due to the safety factor.
“It is worth noting that because only comparable data was used for collating results, there are probably many thousands of cities that are far worse for retirees than Johannesburg, but among the regional cities included in the study there is a lot of room for improvement,” Martinez told the “Saturday Star”.
“One of the key factors taken into consideration in the study was feelings of safety for retirees and on this factor in particular, Johannesburg ranked third worst.
“This factor incorporates data on the number of reported crimes per 100k people, exposure to hazards, local homicide rates, incidence of hate crimes and a perception of safety levels when walking alone at night.
“In addition to this, Johannesburg ranked as one of the worst cities in the Middle East and Africa to retire because it scored comparatively lowly for its events for seniors.”
Martinzed added that another important reason for Johannesburg not ranking highly was its score for legacy management and healthy longevity.
“By assessing national regulations on inheritance, estate and gift taxes, top marginal rates and top marginal income tax rates on capital gains, it showed that Johannesburg ranked poorly in comparison to other cities within the Middle East and Africa for legacy management.
“Johannesburg’s poor ranking for the healthy longevity factor can be attributed to low scores for the percentage of the population aged 65 and above, life expectancy at birth and the healthy life expectancy at birth and at the age of 60.”
Martinez said there was a lot Johannesburg could do to improve.
“For many people, retirement is a time when people can spend quality time with loved ones and have the ability to live with dignity, and millions do so in Johannesburg already. However, for many people around the world, retirement is still a struggle, both financially and socially.
“With that being said, the experience of retirees in Johannesburg can be improved by learning how other cities and countries are legislating and investing resources to achieve better living standards for their elderly population.
“For example, Tokyo, the leader in the overall ranking, has been focusing on making sure their ageing population can live with the highest standards possible for over 40 years.”
Duba fared extremely well, coming out on top as the best city to retire in.
Martinez said that was due to factors such as its financial security and legacy management.
“Dubai ranks as the best city for retirement in the Middle East and Africa, as a result of it ranking the best in the world for financial security, legacy management, ease of travel, dining, safety, conflict and housing factors. This indicates that retirees in Dubai have ample affordable housing, feel safe in the city, and are subject to low levels of geopolitical unrest.
“In addition, this millennium, extensive development has taken place in Dubai and, as a result, it has become a central hub in the Middle East, with strong transport connections to all corners of the globe.
“This, in conjunction with a range of cultural offerings such as Michelin-star restaurants, shopping malls and sporting events, means it ranks extremely well as a global destination for retirees.”
To view data and methodology on the latest report, visit : https://veolar.com/retirement/