MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

European & Canadian cities have best quality of living

European cities dominate the worldwide rankings of locations with the best quality of living, according to Mercer's 2008 Quality of Living survey. Zurich retains its 2007 title as the highest ranked city followed jointly by Vienna (2), Geneva (2), then Vancouver (4) and Auckland (5).

In the UK, London ranks 38, while Birmingham and Glasgow are jointly 56. The highest entry for the United States is Honolulu, appearing at number 28. The cities with the lowest quality of living ranking are Ndjamena (211), Khartoum (212), Brazzaville (213) and Bangui (214). Baghdad, ranking 215, retains its position at the bottom of the table. The rankings are based on a point scoring index, which sees Zurich scoring 108, while Baghdad scores 13.5. Cities are compared to New York as the base city, with an index score of 100. The quality of living survey covers 215 cities and is conducted to help governments and major companies place employees on international assignments. In Latinamerica, San Juan de Puerto Rico ranks 72, followed by Montevideo, 76 and Buenos Aires, 78. The survey also identifies those cities with the highest personal safety ranking based on internal stability, crime, effectiveness of law enforcement and relationships with other countries. Luxembourg is top, followed by Bern, Geneva, Helsinki and Zurich, all equally placed at number 2. Chicago, Houston and San Francisco are amongst the safest cities in the US, all ranking at 53. Baghdad (215) is the world's least safe city along with Kinshasa (214), Karachi (213), Nairobi (212) and Bangui (211). Luxembourg scores 131.4 on the index while Baghdad scores 3.8. According to Slagin Parakatil, senior researcher at Mercer, "Businesses face constant challenges in identifying new markets, expanding operations and acquiring and strategically deploying resources. Establishing suitable allowances linked to local costs and quality of living is essential in encouraging expatriate employees with transferable skills to accept international assignments." He added: "Personal and family safety is of paramount importance when employees consider opportunities overseas. Cities that are, or are perceived as, unsafe may experience difficulties in attracting the best people and skills."