South Africa, Pretoria

Country Full Name: Republic of South Africa.

Country Location: South Africa is at the southern tip of the continent of Africa.

Country Climate: Mostly semiarid; subtropical along east coast; sunny days, cool nights.

Country Terrain: Vast interior plateau rimmed by rugged hills and narrow coastal plain.

Country Major Languages: 11 official languages including English, Afrikaans, Sesotho, Setswana, Xhosa and Zulu.

Country Major Religions: Christianity, Islam, indigenous beliefs.

Location Population: 0.525 Mil (2012 est.).

Country Economy: The economy of South Africa is a two tiered economy; one rivalling other developed countries and the other with only the most basic infrastructure. It is therefore a productive and industrialised economy that exhibits many characteristics associated with developing countries, including a division of labour between formal and informal sectors and an uneven distribution of wealth and income. The primary sector, based on manufacturing, services, mining, and agriculture, is well developed.

Country Currency: South African Rand (ZAR).

Country Inflation: 5.5% (2012 est.).

Pretoria is a city located in the northern part of Gauteng Province, South Africa. It is one of the country's three capital cities, serving as the executive (administrative) and de facto national capital.

As the national administrative (executive) capital of South Africa, Pretoria is the seat of government and houses the headquarters of the main government departments and ministries. As the de facto capital city, it also hosts the foreign embassies and diplomatic missions. The city is a major commercial centre and an important industrial centre. Its main industries are iron and steel works, copper casting, and the manufacture of automobiles, railway carriages and heavy machinery.

The cost of living in Pretoria is average compared to other places. This is based on a comparison of locally collected prices for defined quantities of the same goods and services, converted to USD. Sources include local service providers in each location, international service providers, official governmental statistics and global agency data. The data is quality assured and manually checked by Xpatulator Analysts. The prices of similar related items have been grouped together into 13 basket groups and the cost of living index calculated for each basket in each location. The 13 basket groups are the result of extensive research of actual spending habits ensuring the cost of living indexes reflect a reality-based international expenditure pattern. The cost of living index for each basket for Pretoria is only available using our online calculators.

The current overall cost of living rank (using all 13 baskets) for Pretoria is 420 out of 780 international locations covering every country in the world (rank 1 is most expensive: rank 780 is least expensive). The current cost of living rank for each basket is as follows:

Alcohol & Tobacco costs are average compared to other places for items such as beer, spirits, wine and cigarettes. There are 459 places that are more expensive, and 320 places that are less expensive for alcohol and or tobacco.

Clothing costs are average compared to other places for items such as business, casual and children's clothing and footwear. There are 330 places that are more expensive, and 449 places that are less expensive for clothing.

Communication costs are high compared to other places for various communication costs such as home telephone rental, internet subscription, mobile tariff and data costs. There are 244 places that are more expensive, and 535 places that are less expensive for communication.

Education costs are low compared to other places for items such as creche / pre-school fees, primary school fees, high school fees and tertiary study fees. There are 589 places that are more expensive, and 190 places that are less expensive for education.

Furniture & Appliance costs are high compared to other places for items such as dining table and chairs, home entertainment, kitchen appliances, and sofa. There are 310 places that are more expensive, and 469 places that are less expensive for furniture and appliances.

Grocery costs are low compared to other places for items such as consumables, cleaning products, dairy, fresh fruit & vegetables, general food products, snacks, soft drinks. There are 476 places that are more expensive, and 303 places that are less expensive for groceries.

Healthcare costs are very low compared to other places for doctor visit, hospital stay, non-prescription medicine, and medical insurance. There are 673 places that are more expensive, and 106 places that are less expensive for healthcare.

Household Accommodation costs are average compared to other places for items such as apartment purchase, mortgage rate, rental, and utilities. There are 456 places that are more expensive, and 323 places that are less expensive for household accommodation.

Miscellaneous costs are average compared to other places for items such as dry cleaning, linen, magazines, newspapers, office supplies, and postage stamps. There are 428 places that are more expensive, and 351 places that are less expensive for miscellaneous items.

Personal Care costs are low compared to other places for items such as cosmetics, hair care, and toiletries. There are 572 places that are more expensive, and 207 places that are less expensive for personal care.

Recreation and Culture costs are average compared to other places for items such as books, cinema, sport and theatre tickets. There are 328 places that are more expensive, and 451 places that are less expensive for recreation and culture.

Restaurants, Meals Out and Hotel costs are average compared to other places for items such as hotel daily room rates, meals and beverages in restaurants, and take away food and beverages. There are 373 places that are more expensive, and 406 places that are less expensive for restaurants, meals out and hotels.

Transport costs are high compared to other places for items such as fuel (petrol/gasoline), public transport, vehicle purchase and maintenance. There are 287 places that are more expensive, and 492 places that are less expensive for transport.

Hardship
Hardship in the context of an expatriate and their family refers to the degree of hardship they are likely to experience and the relative impact on their lifestyle in a host location. The degree of hardship correlates to the degree of difference between the home and host location. Hardship pay is compensation for the hardship likely to be endured during an international assignment in order to encourage people to move, in particular to less desirable locations.

Hardship factors include-:
Economic Factors: Such as poverty levels and level of service provision
Political Factors: Such as freedom/tolerance towards different points of view / lifestyle
Religious Factors: Such as freedom/tolerance towards different religions
Public Service Factors: Such as provision of water, electricity, sanitation, work permits etc
Environment/Climate Factors: Such as extreme weather
Personal Safety Factors: Such as personal safety / level of crime
Health Factors: Such as prevalence of disease and health standards
Education Factors: Such as education standards, prevalence of international schools
Transportation Factors: Such as prevalence of public transport, fuel and road safety.

The ratings for hardship are classified into four main groups and can be described as follows:
1) Minimal Hardship (10% Hardship Premium)
2) Some Hardship (20% Hardship Premium)
3) High degree of Hardship (30% Hardship Premium)
4) Extreme Hardship (40% Hardship Premium).

Pretoria is ranked as some hardship with a typical hardship premium of 20%.

Reference
The above information is updated quarterly using data collected over the previous 12 months. The international cost of living & hardship indexes are only available using our online expatriate calculators to enable users to create personalized cost of living comparison reports:

Salary Purchasing Power Parity Calculator
Cost of Living Index Calculator
Cost of Living Allowance Calculator

Published by Xpatulator.com on 1 April 2013.

To link to this article: http://www.xpatulator.com/cost-of-living-review/South-Africa-Pretoria_186.cfm