The interest of foreign investors to engage in Ethiopia in various investment spheres has been exceedingly growing, Ethiopian Investment Commission Deputy Commissioner told ENA.
The Deputy Commissioner, Daniel Teresa said that the global crises and internal conflicts have been some of the challenges to properly promote the investment opportunities in Ethiopia and attract foreign companies to the country.
Despite the sector was challenged by those unprecedented factors, Ethiopia has attained a praiseworthy result in terms of attracting Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), he indicated.
The interest of foreign investors to invest in Ethiopia has increased by ten percent following the recent peace agreement to end the war in the northern part of the country, the deputy commissioner pointed out.
“The country’s investment is growing in a good manner especially after the peace agreement. there are many revivals in the sector. As it is known now, peace and investment have a direct relationship. Without peace, it may be difficult for foreign investors to come and invest in Ethiopia. So peace might be the biggest and main factor for FDI. That is why the flow of investment has shown over ten percent progress compared to the same fiscal year of last year.”
Indicating Ethiopia has attracted over 2.7 billion USD over the last nine months, Daniel stated that the FDI flow has shown an increase of 10 percent compared to the same period last year.
He also pointed out that in the fiscal year, 168 licensed investors have completed their pre-implementation work to invest in agriculture, manufacturing industry, energy, tourism and other investment options.
Investment accords were also signed with some 20 foreign investors who attended Invest Ethiopia 2023,’ international investment forum held in Addis Ababa from 26th April to 28th 2023, the deputy commissioner explained.
Noting that those investors came from India, China, Kenya and other countries, Daniel pointed out that more than 1.6 billion dollars of investment agreements have been made in this regard.
He also noted that the government's support for foreign investors engaged in various investment sectors in Ethiopia has been strengthened.
According to him, the structural reforms in the area designed to increase the flow of FDI and the commitment of the government contributed to register fruitful results.
The ratification of a new investment law in 2019 by the House of Peoples' Representatives is among the major investment reforms, welcomed by many in the international business community, it was indicated.
Source: Ethiopian News Agency