Why South Sudan is the most expensive country in the World?

Source: https://www.flickr.com/photos/juggernautco/5924534403/

Well let's be honest, i'm quite sure none of you would have ever expected South Sudan to be the most expensive in the World, neither did I. The truth is that this statement must be further analysed to really understand what do we mean by "the most expensive country in the World". Does that mean that is so expensive that not even someone coming from New York City could afford to live in it? or, on the contrary, Does it mean that to fit into their standard of living you would need to earn twice as much as you could earn in London? Although that would be really impressing, it doesn't fully correspond to what is going on there.

On the last couple years, it 's quite common in every single social network to be "invaded" by articles like the following: "15 wonderful hidden places that every left-handed person should visit before turning 37". That's just an hilarious example but there are bunch of them. I have always wondered if we are all becoming more and more silly by reading this sort of articles normally based on simplified "packaged" information. That exact feeling came to my mind when i first saw the article about" Juba (Capital of South Sudan) being the most expensive city in the World, How could that ever happen?

South Sudan in the World. 

Considering some basic information, the conclusion becomes even more astonishing. First of all, South Sudan, is today the newest nation in the World, created in 2011 after long lasting conflict with the largely muslim Sudan. It was immediately recognized by the UN as opposed to other non-recognized states such as Transnistria or Somaliland. Second, Its president, Mr Kiir, always wearing a cow-boy hat and claiming to be "Bilblical Joshua" is a devoted christian but also responsible for the increasing violence towards opposition leaders that led more than 200.000 people to its neighbor Ethiopia. Third, finally South Sudan has been struggling in an internal civil war for the last couple of years and suffer a lack of basic needs: food, drinks, power electricity...etc. In addition to that, South Soudan ranks first on the Failed States Index for the second year in a row, with a poor record in human rights and more than half of its population living below the poverty line especially in rural areas where more than 80% of the population is concentrated. 

Taking that into account, i thought to myself there was something weird in that information. It's important to notice that those rankings are only made for expatriates, that means "an individual living in a country other than their country of citizenship, often temporarely and for work reasons". That definition seems definitely far away from the situation of average south sudanese citizens. The boom of the oil industry, that represents more than 80 % of its GDP, has attracted many expats working for multinationals however, the lack of infrastructure and the cost of the transportation make products like Coke cans, water or laundry products really expensive and hardly affordable for locals. For instance. according to  the website expatistan.com, comparing prices for expats worldwide, you can find the following prices comparing Madrid ( Spain) with Juba ( South Sudan):

Source: http://www.expatistan.com/cost-of-living/juba?currency=EUR

Eventually, the situation seems desperate and the sharp inflation along with the lack of reserves is turning the country into bankruptcy. Once again, reality reflects how wrong people can be when they they first think which cities are the most expensive for expats. Not surprisingly, three of the most expensive cities in the World are in Africa with Luanda (Angola) and  Kinshasa( D.R.Congo) in the 2nd and 7th postion respectively for pretty much the same reasons.  By drawing simple conclusions, you come to simple realities. As Allan Poe said: " Words have no power to impress the mind without the exquisite horror of their reality."

.............................................................................................................................................................

From now on, you will also find me at www.unitedexplanations.org, I will keep you updated!