Pricing in Africa
(with fond memories of my
time spent in Pricing at OC!)
10-1-01
It's so hard to explain the difference in cost of living here vs. the US. I thought I'd make a list of common items with their local prices so you can compare. The money here is called cfa - Central Francs Afrique? All of the French-speaking West African countries use it. Checks and credit cards are rarely used. Everything (refrigerators, airplane tickets, ...) is purchased in cash.
Currently there are about 700cfa to a US dollar. The smallest coin I ever receive is 5cfa (less than 1cent). The largest bill is 10,000cfa ($14.29). When you are going to spend lots of money, you end up carrying a huge wad of bills with you since 10,000cfa is as high as they go! If you really want to test out your budgeting skills, remember I earn about 200cfa (137,000cfa) each month! And I'm "middle class!"
In general, it seems to me that "necessities" - food and African clothing - are cheap. But "luxuries" - anything from toilet paper to computers - are expensive, especially given the income level. The other funny thing is the small amounts you can purchase - 1 cigarette, 1 stick of gum, 1/4 cup cooking oil, 2 cups laundry detergent, etc... You realize that people really earn, shop, eat, and live day-to-day.
| Item | cfa | US $ | ||
| Toilet paper - 4 rolls | 1,000 | cfa | $ | 1.40 |
| 1 egg | 50 | cfa | $ | .07 |
| 5 medium tomatoes | 50 | cfa | $ | .07 |
| 1 smallish pineapple | 65 | cfa | $ | .09 |
| Oscillating fan | 12,000 | cfa | $ | 17.00 |
| 4 dinner plates | 1,000 | cfa | $ | 1.40 |
| 4 plastic drinking cups | 300 | cfa | $ | .40 |
| 2 yards cotton fabric (cheapest) | 1,000 | cfa | $ | 1.40 |
| 5 meters (6.3 yds) cotton fabric for curtains | 5,000 | cfa | $ | 7.15 |
| 1 pair of cheap flip-flops | 1,200 | cfa | $ | 1.70 |
| African broom (bundle of straw w/o a stick) | 200 | cfa | $ | .29 |
| American broom (softer bristles w/ a stick) | 2,000 | cfa | $ | 2.90 |
| Labor & thread to hem curtains | 2,500 | cfa | $ | 3.50 |
| 1 bottle coke | 250 | cfa | $ | .35 |
| 1 bottle beer | 500 | cfa | $ | .70 |
| 1 kg (2.2 lbs) rice | 400 | cfa | $ | .57 |
| 1 baguette French bread (hot from oven or stale) | 125 | cfa | $ | .18 |
| Twix bar | 700 | cfa | $ | 1.00 |
| 1 day's unskilled labor (farming, hauling, ...) | 1,000 | cfa | $ | 1.40 |
| 1 day's skilled labor (mason, wood-worker, ...) | 2,000 | cfa | $ | 2.85 |
| Weekly newspaper | 250 | cfa | $ | .35 |
| CD/Cassette/Radio (cheapest available) | 94,000 | cfa | $ | 135.00 |
| 15cm Foam Double-Mattress | 29,000 | cfa | $ | 41.40 |
| Deposit to hook up electricity | 6,000 | cfa | $ | 8.57 |
| Deposit to hook up water (28 day's unskilled labor!) | 28,000 | cfa | $ | 40.00 |
| Postage for in-country letter | 200 | cfa | $ | .29 |
| Postage for international letter | 620 | cfa | $ | .89 |
Hope that gives you some insight into life and money here in Cote d'Ivoire!
Love,
Kate