The 29 cities with the worst quality of life in the world
29. Karachi, Pakistan — It's the largest and most populous metropolitan city in the world but is also one of the most violent. Kidnapping, violent crime, and muggings are commonplace.
28. Tehran, Iran — Sanctions have only just been lifted on the country but Tehran has high poverty levels, social instability, and murder. Kidnapping, theft, fraud, money laundering, and drug trafficking are just some of the regular crimes committed in the country's capital.
27. Lome, Togo — The city is the largest in Togo and holds high unemployment rates. Its infrastructure is also deteriorating and the African nation faces problems with living conditions and rubbish collection.
26. Tashkent, Uzbekistan — The capital in the central Asia country has become a hotbed for terrorism over the last year. In 2015, the US embassy in Tashkent was attacked for the first time in 11 years and the government is trying to counteract growth in Islamic extremism.
25. Abidjan, Cote D'Ivoire — It's the economic capital of the Ivory Coast but the British embassy has issued warnings against anyone travelling there unless essential. It said "violent crime can occur at any time" and that the city, and the country, has a "high threat of terrorism."
24. Addis Ababa, Ethiopia —The capital city is going through a building boom but many of its citizens are suffering from extreme poverty. On top of that, social friction between the government and its citizens is high, especially after protests over building plans killed students and farmers.
23. Ashgabat, Turkmenistan — The city is largely controlled by the government, mainly through a large percentage of employment coming from state-owned enterprises. Unfortunately, the city suffers from chronic water shortages due to state mismanagement, which is crippling for citizens where temperatures soared as high as 47.2 degrees Celsius (116.96 F) in 2015.
22. Harare, Zimbabwe — The capital, as well as the rest of the country, suffers from an oppressive government led by Robert Mugabe. The city is also poverty stricken and millions of citizens are starving due to 75% of maize crops failing, prompting Mugabe to appeal for £1.2 billion ($1.6 billion) to help pay for grain and other food.
21. Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan — Poverty is high in the economic centre of the country. Meanwhile, the government is battling continual attacks from members of Islamic State — also known as ISIS and Daesh.
20. Lagos, Nigeria — The country's largest city battles environmental threats, such as riptides, annually. Citizens are also under continual threats to their personal safety, including the kidnapping of students and murder.
19 (joint). Abuja, Nigeria — The city, like Lagos, suffers from high crime rates from inter-communal violence. The British Foreign Office tells travellers: "You could get kidnapped or find yourself caught up in a terrorist or other violent incident."
19 (joint). Dushanbe, Tajikistan — Poverty and energy shortages are a huge issue for the city and country as a whole. The World Bank also warns that doing business there is difficult due to the inadequate infrastructure.
17. Dhaka, Bangladesh — Dhaka is one of the world's most populated cities and its garment exports bolsters its economy. But working conditions and human rights, as well as local poverty for a bulk of its citizens, are criticised and under scrutiny by world governments and charities.
16. Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso — The city is under continual threat of terrorist attacks and earlier this year, an Al-Qaeda bombing on a popular hotel killed 29 people.
15. Tripoli, Libya — The city was carved up by two rival warlords last year and even the main airport was destroyed in the summer of 2015 and all the main embassies have been closed down. Migrants and refugees are also flooding into the country due to its proximity with Europe.
14. Niamey, Niger — Protests, governmental corruption, and local poverty place this city onto the list.
13. Antananarivo, Madagascar — The city, and the rest of the country, depends on agriculture for its economic growth. However political instability hinders any chance of continuous development.
12. Bamako, Mali — The city was rocked by terrorist attacks last year when Islamist militants took 170 hostages and killed 20 of them in a mass shooting at the Radisson Blu hotel.
11. Nouakchott, Mauritania —The city was originally a small village of little importance until 1958 until growing rapidly into one of the biggest cities in the Sahara. However, overcrowding, droughts, and poverty have helped fill the city with slums.
10. Conakry, Guinea Republic — The port city is riddled with personal safety issues where violent crime, protests, and strikes wreck havoc in Conakry.
9. Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo — Ethnic nationalist conflict is rife in the city and NGOs have tried to step in to provide aid and food relief to the city and the rest of the country.
8. Brazzaville, Congo — Government corruption has triggered huge protests in the city which led to a number of people being killed by the police.
7. Damascus, Syria — Mercer says the city has "witnessed continual violence and terrorist attacks that weigh upon the daily life of locals and expatriates."
6. N'Djamena, Chad —The city in one of the world's poorest countries has suffered at the hands of militant Islamist group Boko Haram. The group carries out frequent suicide bombings in the city.
5. Khartoum, Sudan —It's the second largest city in Sudan and is a key recruiting ground for ISIS.
4. Port Au Prince, Haiti —The city is rife with violent crime and is dangerous for travellers. Rapes and robberies are common and there is a worrying growth in vigilante violence.
3. Sana'a, Yemen — The largest city in Yemen has been devastated by airstrikes from Saudi Arabia as the country has become a battleground in the proxy war between Iran and Saudi Arabia.
2. Bangui, Central African Republic — The capital city is incredibly poor and many citizens rely on aid for survival. On top of that, violent sectarian clashes erupt regularly in the area.
1. Baghdad, Iraq — The capital city has suffered severe infrastructural damage from several wars and continual on the ground violence. It continues to face threats from ISIS.
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