At the global level, according to the OECD, China has invested the most in Africa in 2015-2016 ($ 38.4 billion), followed by the United Arab Emirates ($ 14.9 billion) .And third place is Italy, the leading European investor, with a total of $ 11.6 billion, more than the US ($ 10.4 billion).

The peninsula owes much of this excellent ranking to its national oil company which alone carried out 70% of these investments. After the discovery of immense reserves of natural gas off Mozambique, ENI redoubled luck in Egypt by discovering the gigantic Mediterranean gas field of Zohr. But beyond the gas sector, Italy also has the giant Ferrero (Nutella, Kinder) or the construction industry Salini Impregilo, which prosper in Africa.

To accompany and accelerate the African dynamic that seems to be successful, Rome launched this year an investment fund called Africa Act, with an initial investment of 200 million euros. The aim is to mobilize 10 to 20 times more capital to propel Italian companies, including its multitude of SMEs, in the African market.

 Countries that have invested in Africa in 2015-16, according to fDi Markets 2017.

The companies that invested the most in Africa in 2015-16, according to the OECD.

Source: Agence Ecofin