Kenya’s capital Nairobi has been ranked 56th out of 80 emerging and fast-growing cities worldwide in the new Global Attractiveness Index.
The report, Global Attractiveness Index for Emerging and Fast-Growing Cities (GAI), was released on March 23, 2026, during the Climate Change Business Summit in Nairobi.
The index placed Nairobi 11th across the entire continent of Africa and 6th in Sub-Saharan Africa.
The index, developed by DHL Express Sub-Saharan Africa in partnership with The European House — Ambrosetti (TEHA), a Milan-based think tank, evaluated 80 cities worldwide based on their ability to attract and retain capital, talent and services.
The index measured performance across four pillars — economy, environment, social conditions and urban infrastructure.
The findings highlighted the Kenyan capital’s growing economic and environmental performance, while also pointing to structural challenges that continue to limit its competitiveness.
According to the findings, Nairobi continues to demonstrate a strong economic profile, ranking 39th globally, 9th in Africa, and 5th in Sub‑Saharan Africa in the economic dimension.
The city’s diversified economy and relative affordability position it competitively among peer emerging cities, reinforcing its role as a commercial anchor in Eastern Africa.
The report highlighted Nairobi’s environmental performance as a key strength, with the city ranking 35th globally, 5th in Africa, and 4th in Sub‑Saharan Africa.
Nairobi performed particularly well on air‑quality levels, public‑transport coverage and green‑area availability, outperforming most large African metropolitan cities. This strong environmental profile constitutes a distinctive competitive asset, especially considering the pressures associated with rapid urban growth.
However, Nairobi faces significant social and infrastructure challenges according to the index.
Nairobi ranks 73rd globally, 21st in Africa, and 16th in Sub‑Saharan Africa in the Social Index, reflecting severe deficits in basic living conditions.
The index highlighted that Nairobi’s difficulties in the social dimension are largely driven by two indicators with particularly strong influence on the overall score — the very low share of the population with access to safely managed sanitation services and the relevant presence of slum settlements across the metropolitan area.
Access to safely managed sanitation services is very low (27.93 per cent) and 40.5 per cent of the urban population lives in slums.
These two conditions point to significant structural gaps in basic urban living standards and social inclusion, and together they represent the most critical bottlenecks weighing on Nairobi’s social performance.
Infrastructure constraints further limit Nairobi’s global competitiveness, with the city placed 65th globally, 18th in Africa, and 13th in Sub‑Saharan Africa, signaling gaps in essential services and digital connectivity.
The distribution of the Urban Infrastructure KPIs, ranging from electricity access to digital connectivity, water supply and sewerage systems, reveals uneven progress and underlines the fundamental infrastructural challenges.
According to the report, Nairobi’s most critical weaknesses lie in digital connectivity and access to sewerage systems, two areas that strongly influence the overall infrastructure score.
The city records only 41.6 per cent of individuals using the Internet and only 31.8 per cent of the urban population is connected to sewerage systems. These figures reflect substantial deficiencies in essential urban infrastructure.
But access to basic drinking water shows a solid performance and represents a relative strength in the city’s infrastructure landscape. Yet, these positive elements are not sufficient to compensate for the significant gaps in digital and sanitation infrastructure, especially given the high correlation of these indicators with the aggregate Urban Infrastructure score.
Despite these challenges, Nairobi’s standing improves when viewed within the African and Sub-Saharan context, where it remains one of the region’s most dynamic cities.
The report emphasized that boosting city attractiveness will depend on strengthening core systems such as infrastructure, digital connectivity, and basic services, while also creating a more supportive environment for businesses and inclusive urban growth.