Mr Akinwumi Adesina
A total of 45 investment deals worth US$32 billion have been signed at the first African Investment Forum (AIF) in Johannesburg.
The majority of the clinched deals are in infrastructure, energy, transport, agriculture and housing sectors, Akinwumi Adesina, President of the African Development Bank (ADB) has announced.
With the continent requiring at least 130 billion U.S dollars yearly for infrastructure development, the bank said the projects signed at the three-day forum, which concluded last Friday, should be welcomed.
“What we have done in this is to tell the world that Africa is ready for investment, Africa absorbs investments,” Adesina said, adding that multi-billion dollar investment in water and sanitation projects signed at the forum would transform the lives of many communities.
The forum hosted by ADB and Gauteng government attracted several African head of states. It was aimed at attracting investment to the continent and ensuring that the environment is conductive for investment and tackling any existing regulatory barriers.
Intra-Africa cooperation has been the buzz word throughout the investment forum.
A project worth US$2.6 billion was signed between South Africa and Ghana. The transport deal will see the construction of the Accra Sky Train project, making travelling much easier and cheaper for citizens who use public transport in Ghana.
Speaking to Xinhua on the sidelines on the forum, Frank Nweke from Nigeria’s Brass Fertiliser and Petrochemical said that the company he represented plans to invest about 3.3 billion U.S dollars on an agricultural business in Nigeria.
The project is expected to enhance food security in the West African nation and create more jobs.
“This project has the potential to employ 15,000 people during construction phase. This is one of the biggest projects done by the private sector in Nigeria. This would enable us to diversify Nigeria’s economy away from oil,” Nweke added.
GNA
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