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Looking to head to Africa? You might consider Johannesburg. Though the South African city used to have a reputation of being violent, that seems to have changed a great deal. In fact, the 2015 YouthfulCities Index has just named Johannesburg as the “most popular African city” overall for young people aged 15-to-29. Joburg beat out thriving Lagos, Nigeria; exotic Casablanca, Morocco; and tourist-popular Nairobi, Kenya.
The index analyzes the perceptions of youth on 20 attributes, including creativity, employment, safety and entrepreneurship.
Overall, Africa is dominated by youth, with more than 40 percent of its working age population being between 15 and 24. Actually, Africa is the youngest continent in the world.
Johannesburg (called “Jozi” by locals) is popular with young people for a variety of reasons. Among them: Commuting is affordable and efficient. There is, for example the $2 billion, high-speed Gautrain train and the Rea Vaya project, as bus rapid transit system that covers 205 miles of the city.
Another reason Johannesburg is favored is the access to healthcare and facilities.
Johannesburg’s diversity s also a major plus. “Johannesburg not only tops the African cities list for being diverse, but it also has a high global ranking: 10th in the world, out of the 55 countries surveyed. Young people can speak (and vote in) more languages, there are diverse food offerings, and there’s an openness to gender and sexual issues rights,” reports Quartz.
But on top of the recent outbreak of xenophobic violence, the city is dealing with its history of racial segregation by encouraging a culturally diverse city.
“The economy, nightlife as well as cosmopolitan nature has accounted for the diversity that the city has experienced over the past couple of years,” says Oyindamola Johnson, a Nigerian-born researcher for the YouthfulCities, who now resides in and works between Johannesburg and Durban.
While Joburg is tops in general, for young African entrepreneurs, Lagos is the city for you. The Nigerian city’s entrepreneurial spirit is lifted by its numerous new business incubators. Coming up in July, 1,000 youth entrepreneurs from 52 African countries will come to Lagos for an entrepreneurial boot camp, which is part of the $100 million program for young African entrepreneurs developed by the Tony Elumelu Foundation.
And Casablanca is the most affordable for young Africans. The Morocco city ranks the highest in access to financial services, safety, affordability and access to employment for young Africans.
