Inflows of foreign direct investment into Africa decreased by 44% from 2021 to 2022

Global inflows of foreign direct investment fell by 12% in 2022, and Africa saw a 44% decline from $80 billion in 2021 to $45 billion. According to UNCTAD data, only two of Africa's five major regions — North and East Africa — saw a rise in FDI in 2022.

Source:

United Nations Conference on Trade and Development

Period:

2021 - 2022
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After peaking at $3.88B in 2019, Ghana’s FDI fell to $1.31B in 2023, a 66% drop in four years
  • FDI inflows surged from just $0.01 billion in 1990 to a record $3.88 billion in 2019, marking a 388x increase over 30 years.
  • Between 2006 and 2019, Ghana consistently attracted over $1 billion annually, with nine of those years surpassing $3 billion.
  • The highest FDI year on record was 2019, likely reflecting peak investor confidence before the pandemic.
  • Since 2021, FDI has remained below $2 billion, with 2023 recording $1.31 billion and 2024 only slightly higher at $1.67 billion.
  • Ghana’s FDI trend reflects a pattern of post-2000 acceleration, plateauing around 2012–2015, then declining sharply post-2020.
On average, Nigeria’s NBS publishes Q1 GDP reports 53 days after the quarter ends. But in 2025, it's been 86 days—and still no release
  • Nigeria’s National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) usually releases Q1 GDP data 53 days after the quarter ends.
  • As of June 25, 2025, the Q1 2025 figures are 86 days overdue—that’s 33 days longer than average.
  • The delay coincides with a GDP rebasing exercise, updating the base year to 2019.
  • Q1 GDP reports have typically come out in May for the past eight years—until now.
Egypt accounted for nearly half of Africa’s $97 billion FDI inflow in 2024
  • Africa attracted $97 billion in FDI in 2024 — nearly double the 2023 level — marking a record year for the continent.
  • Egypt alone accounted for nearly 50% of total African inflows, driven by a $35 billion Ras El-Hekma megaproject and sweeping reforms.
  • Major gainers included Zambia (+1340%), Guinea (+105%), and Mauritania (+74%), showing momentum beyond usual hotspots.
  • Nigeria’s FDI dropped 42%, while South Africa (–29%) and Senegal (–58%) also saw steep declines.
Egypt’s $47 billion FDI haul puts it ahead of major economies in 2024
  • Global FDI rose to $1.51 trillion, still below its 2015 peak.
  • The top 10 countries accounted for 65% of total inflows.
  • Egypt ranked 8th globally with $46.6 billion, ahead of UAE and Mexico.
  • A $35 billion Ras El-Hekma deal drove much of Egypt’s surge.
  • Egypt’s FDI grew over 370%, the fastest among top recipients.
Over $3.2 billion was sent abroad from Nigeria from 2000 to 2023, with a $1 billion spike in 2015 standing out
  • Migrants living in Nigeria sent out over $3.2 billion in personal remittances between 2000 and 2023.
  • The year 2015 recorded a sharp and unusual outflow of $1.04 billion, the highest by far in the entire 24-year span.
  • After 2015, remittance outflows sharply declined, stabilising below $100 million from 2018 onward.
  • Prior to 2015, outflows were consistently under $110 million annually, indicating a major anomaly in that spike year.
Nigeria has received $430B in remittances since 2000, peaking at $24.3B in 2018
  • Nigeria received a total of approximately $430 billion in remittances between 2000 and 2023.
  • The highest amount recorded was in 2018, when remittances peaked at $24.31 billion.
  • In 2020, inflows dropped significantly to $17.21 billion due to the global COVID-19 crisis.
  • Between 2021 and 2023, remittances remained stable, averaging around $19.7 billion per year.
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