Worldwide, Vienna, Zurich and Auckland were named as the best places to live, followed by Munich and Vancouver. Paris was ranked 27th.

The city offering the worst quality of life was Baghdad followed by Bangui in the Central African Republic and the Haitian capital Port-au-Prince.

Singapore and Dhaka were ranked in 25th and 208th positions respectively, with Baghdad in 223rd position.

Political instability, crime and levels of pollution were among the factors Mercer took into account in research carried out in 460 cities for its Worldwide Quality of Living Survey. Many of the cities are ranked jointly.

“In an increasingly globalised economy, cities beyond the traditional business and financial centres are improving quality of life in order to attract foreign firms,” said Emmanuel Rivere of Mercer France. — AFP