Jay456watt
JF-Expert Member
- Aug 23, 2016
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What Makes Nairobi the Only African City in Global Investors Top Five Watchlist
Nairobi is on the global watchlist of top five fast modernising cities that are attracting new global business on growing realisation that big companies cannot operate from one sub-Saharan location in South Africa.
The city is also taking off as a hub for global corporations looking to establish an office to cover the East African region, according to Global Cities - The 2016 Report by Knight Frank.
Big companies with global reach have come to the conclusion that they need to operate from multiple locations and Nairobi is a natural starting point in entering or expanding to new regions.
Nairobi has been termed as demonstrating Africa's rapid modernisation and joins other cities like Dubai, United Arab Emirates capital, which is said to have pulled clear of past difficulties and is expanding as a hub for investment, tourism and transport.
Others are Kuala Lumpar in Malaysia, Bangkok in Thailand and Moscow, Russia.
The report indicates that around 1.8 million square feet of modern shopping mall space was opened in 2015 and the space forecast to increase.
"Given that the mall stock previously had totalled 980,000 square feet, this amounts to a revolution in the city's retail experience, which matches the huge economic and demographic changes that have unfolded in Kenya," said James Roberts, the chief economist at Knight Frank.
With the world's cities predicted to add 380 million new citizens in the next five years, new mass transit systems, utilities and faster connections to markets will be needed.
Nairobi is on the global watchlist of top five fast modernising cities that are attracting new global business on growing realisation that big companies cannot operate from one sub-Saharan location in South Africa.
The city is also taking off as a hub for global corporations looking to establish an office to cover the East African region, according to Global Cities - The 2016 Report by Knight Frank.
Big companies with global reach have come to the conclusion that they need to operate from multiple locations and Nairobi is a natural starting point in entering or expanding to new regions.
Nairobi has been termed as demonstrating Africa's rapid modernisation and joins other cities like Dubai, United Arab Emirates capital, which is said to have pulled clear of past difficulties and is expanding as a hub for investment, tourism and transport.
Others are Kuala Lumpar in Malaysia, Bangkok in Thailand and Moscow, Russia.
The report indicates that around 1.8 million square feet of modern shopping mall space was opened in 2015 and the space forecast to increase.
"Given that the mall stock previously had totalled 980,000 square feet, this amounts to a revolution in the city's retail experience, which matches the huge economic and demographic changes that have unfolded in Kenya," said James Roberts, the chief economist at Knight Frank.
With the world's cities predicted to add 380 million new citizens in the next five years, new mass transit systems, utilities and faster connections to markets will be needed.
