Manama, the capital of the tiny Gulf State kingdom of Bahrain is a great place to work and live, according to a survey of expats.
The city topped the rankings of 51 international cities popular with expats.
With a population of 157,000, Manama is a modern glass and steel city on an island in the Persian Gulf bordered by Saudi Arabia and Qatar across a narrow channel to the south.
Eight out of 10 expats rated Manama an easy place to make new friends, although none included a local national among their social groups.
“Bahrainis are very friendly and welcoming. Everyone speaks English.” Researchers for the InterNations expat Insider Survey 2017 were told.
World’s best and worst expat cities
The other top five cities were Prague (Czech Republic), Madrid (Spain), Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia) and Amsterdam (Netherlands).
Prague was the favourite city to work – topping every category linked to jobs, while Madrid was a favourite place to live but not quite so good for careers.
At the other end of the scale were Dublin (Republic of Ireland), Riyadh (Saudi Arabia), Paris (France), Jeddah (Saudi Arabia) and bottom of the list Lagos (Nigeria).
Expats reported a low quality of life and problematic work lives in Lagos, Nigeria’s former capital and second largest city.
The city was given low marks for the local economy and standards of health care.
“There’s the national economic insecurity, a raging inflation, the worst corruption I have experienced in any country, and the appalling lack of infrastructure,” one expat told researchers.
Disappointing and unfriendly
More than half of expats in the city have concerns for their personal safety.
A disappointing work-life balance and general unfriendliness make expats in Jeddah feel uncomfortable about life.
In Paris, expats also feel unwelcome and find settling difficult.
“With an unexpected winner in first place and the famous City of Lights in the bottom three, the Expat City Ranking 2017 offers some interesting insights into urban life abroad,” said an InterNations spokesman.
Web site Internations asked 13,000 for their opinions about the cities where they live to compile the rankings, with every city in the rankings having a response from at least 45 expats.
Download the full InterNations Expat Insider 2017 report (PDF)
