A Mexican think tank, as released a study on the most dangerous cities in the world, and Johannesburg is on no 50 on the list. The data is compiled from crime statistics from 2011, although it seems that murder rate per capita is the key determinant. A short story on the list, in English is available on BusinessInsider.
It is interesting that so few countries make contributions to the list, and all but two of those countries are in the Americas. These lists are off course influenced by the availability of data, and I do think it will change if more crimes are taken into account.
I thought that the crime rate could potentially be linked to the Gini index - which looks at the degree of income equality in the world (full list here). While there is some link - it is certainly not a high degree of correlation. Southern African countries dominate in terms of income inequality, but only South Africa has a reputation for high crime rates.
| Country | No. of Cities | Gini Index (Inequality) |
|---|---|---|
| Brazil | 14 | 16 |
| Colombia | 5 | 10 |
| El Salvador | 1 | 34 |
| Guatemala | 1 | 11 |
| Honduras | 2 | 9 |
| Iraq | 1 | n/a |
| Jamaica | 1 | 42 |
| Mexico | 12 | 18 |
| Panama | 1 | 17 |
| Puerto Rico | 1 | n/a |
| South Africa | 4 | 2 |
| USA | 4 | 43 |
| Venezuela | 3 | 71 |
