Equatorial Guinea has set aside 500 billion Francs CFA (about US$ 1 billion) as co-investment fund in support of the drive for foreign investments in the country.
This indication was given Monday by Marcelino Owono Edu, Equatorial Guinea’s Minister of Finance and Budgets, at the opening of a two-day symposium here at which the country’s economic diversification programme was unveiled.
“This Co-Investment Fund allocation is in conformity with the country’s commitment to lay the bases for economic diversification to ensure sustainable growth and create more jobs in our country,” Edu said, adding that “We have been blessed by an incredible oil wealth, which we aim to use to build the foundations of an emerging country, via a strong plan for economic diversification and industrialization plan.”
Addressing an assembly of over 700 entrepreneurs, investors and analysts, scholars and representatives of development agencies gathered at the symposium, Edu said that the fund aims at fuelling the state’s overall strategy to diversify the economy beyond oil and gas, on which its recent growth has relied upon, to ensure a more balanced economic system, less vulnerable to global shifts in oil supply and demand.
He said that during the next three years, the fund will support the country’s development around key economic sectors which have been identified for industrial development together with the international private sector: agriculture and animal ranching, fisheries, petrochemicals and mining, tourism and financial markets.
According to the minister, “a number of Memoranda of Understanding will be signed between global companies and local counterparts during the two-day forum.”
