In a new survey by Bayt.com titled ‘Top Cities in the Middle East and North Africa', Eastern Province, Riyadh and Jeddah ranked among the Top 10 Cities to live in. In all three cities, the majority of citizens were happy about their current city of residence. 60% of Eastern Province residents claim to be happy, with a third admitting to being ‘very happy'. In Jeddah and Riyadh, 24% of respondents from both cities claimed to be ‘very happy'. The ranking was based on several factors including economic, environmental, standard of living, socio-cultural, and entrepreneurship factors. The survey determined that the top 10 cities in the MENA are: Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Muscat, Eastern Province, Doha, Riyadh, Marrakech, Rabat, Jeddah, and Kuwait City. Of the key economic elements addressed in this study, three quarters (75%) of respondents believe that availability of jobs is the most important factor. Affordable housing (72%), followed by reasonably-priced day to day necessities (70%) and career growth (70%) were also of high importance to respondents. Around a third of the respondents from Jeddah (32%) and Eastern Province (37%) respectively claim that competitive salaries in their cities were ‘good' or ‘excellent'. 28% of residents in Riyadh echoed these sentiments. Moreover, residents from Eastern Province felt that benefits for working parents (56%), career growth (50%) and availability of affordable housing (40%) were ‘good' or ‘excellent'. Health insurance and social security systems (78%) are considered the most important labor rights for respondents in the MENA region. These are followed by wage protection (69%), end of service benefits (68%), and termination rights (68%). Eastern Province, once again scored highest of the three KSA cities in terms of labor rights. More than half of the respondents in Eastern Province ranked health insurance and social security systems (60%), vacation allowances (54%) and end of service benefits (50%) as ‘good' or ‘excellent'. In fact, health insurance and social security systems ranked ‘good' or ‘excellent' by 54% of Jeddah respondents and 47% of Riyadh respondents. MENA respondents' priorities for their city's standard of living revolve around safety, education, and healthcare. Feeling of stability and security (84%), quality of education (81%), availability of healthcare facilities (81%), and quality of available healthcare facilities (80%) emerge as the most important standard of living factors. In fact, standard of living ranked high for all KSA cities. The availability of healthcare facilities was ‘good' or ‘excellent' for 61% of Jeddah and Riyadh residents, and 66% of residents from Eastern Province. In terms of quality of healthcare, 53% of Jeddah, 66% of Riyadh and 70% of Eastern Province residents said that it was ‘good' or ‘excellent'. Similarly, education was ranked ‘good' or ‘excellent' by 43% of respondents in Jeddah, 62% in Riyadh and 84% in Eastern Province. These factors are the forces within cultures, societies, and cities that affect the thoughts, feelings, and behaviors of the individuals who are part of them. In the MENA region, the most important socio-cultural factors are low crime rate (81%) and effective law enforcement (77%). KSA respondents felt that their cities had a ‘good' or ‘excellent' stable political environment (56% Jeddah, 58% Riyadh and 70% Eastern Province), low crime rates (61% Riyadh, 66% Eastern Province, and 70% Jeddah), and effective law enforcement (46% Jeddah, 49% Riyadh and 70% Eastern Province). Inhabitants of MENA cities value environmental factors relating to cleanliness above all, with clean water (83%), clean air (74%), and clean streets (69%) ranking as the most important survey factors. KSA respondents claimed that clean water (46% Jeddah, 60% Riyadh and 70% Eastern Province) and the beauty of architecture and buildings (51% Jeddah, 57% Riyadh and 50% Eastern Province) were ‘good' or ‘excellent'. Suhail Masri, Vice President of Employer Solutions at Bayt.com, said: "The MENA region is very diverse when it comes to the factors that affect the overall quality of living in each city. Our Bayt.com Top Cities survey ranks the most desirable cities for people to both work and live in. Our responsibility as a leading career site in the region extends to providing job seekers holistic information to make an informed decision if they are, for instance, looking to relocate to any of these cities for work. Simultaneously, when employers know where their city stands, they can do more to contribute to their city's standard of living by addressing the needs that job seekers are looking for the most. At Bayt.com, we strive to empower people with the tools, information and technologies to build their lifestyle of choice, which is why we always share valuable insights into life in cities that MENA professionals might choose to live in." Arleen Gonsalves, Assistant Research Manager, YouGov, said: "This is one of most comprehensive surveys conducted in the MENA, which provides deeper understanding of standards of living across major cities using social and cultural yardstick instead of focusing merely on physical infrastructure. The survey findings give valuable insights to MNCs as well as job seekers who are planning to move to this region." — SG
