Nasr: Six African Countries Among Top 10 Fastest Growing in World

Minister of Investment and International Cooperation Sahar Nasr said on Friday that six African countries are among the 10 fastest growing in the world, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Nasr added that Africa has the highest percentage of foreign direct investment (FDI) growth of about 11%. 

She pointed out, during her speech at the Investment for Africa 2019 forum, that the increase in the proportion of FDI comes at a time when the proportion of global investments decline by about 13%.

"Our presence reflects a sincere desire to continue the efforts we started years ago to find ways to meet the challenges ahead and the need to join hands," she said.

Nasr stressed that the presence of President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi reflects the importance of the forum, as one of the most important economic gathering in the continent, pointing out that the President directed to accelerate the pace of cooperation between Egypt and the African nations.

The minister pointed out that this year witnessed Egypt's implementation of more than 154 projects in the fields of infrastructure, transport, renewable energy, agriculture and capital investment.

She explained that the conference will witness the signing of a number of agreements, and the announcement of new investments in Africa. "Through the conference we build practical steps to increase flows to Africa to help improve the standard of living and increase productivity," she stressed.

Nasr pointed to workshops over the past two days, in cooperation with ministries from African countries, to develop a unified vision to support industry and increase trade.

She stressed that the conference focuses on the main themes to promote the sources of growth, namely investment in infrastructure, the activation of free trade agreements and renewable energy, as well as digital transformation and investment in human capital.

The forum will discuss the implementation of steps to increase attention toward industry, and the benefits from the entering the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) into force, doubling the proportion of trade within the continent.