Why Africa is an investment hotspot

Sourjya Bhowmick | Updated on: 13 February 2017, 7:01 IST

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Africa has become a hotspot for investors and India is eager to get a foothold there.

Africa has beaten global expectations to emerge as a profitable place for business. Here's why

The third India-Africa summit kicked off on 26 October. 54 African countries are part of what is turning into one of the biggest diplomatic summits India has ever held.

China got there first, but India has been looking towards Africa as a new investment destination as well.

Africa continues to struggle with corruption, poverty, sickness, and some of the lowest human development indices in the world. Yet, seen through some prisms, Africa has grown into a continent of optimism.

Here are a few facts that show why Indian businesses are making a beeline for Africa:

54

million

The number of stable jobs that Africa aims to create by 2020.
But, according to a report in The Foreign Policy, if Africa aims to match other rising economies like Thailand, South Korea and Brazil, then they need to create 72 million new jobs.
In the first decade of the millennium Africa added 91 million to the labour market, but only 37 million were stable wage paying jobs.

2.2

million

The barrels of oil that Africa produces every day.
The continent also has 30% of the Earth's remaining mineral resources.
Africa even has the largest reserves in the world of gold (40%) and platinum (90%).

The African package comes with a lot of challenges, be it child labour, malnutrition, poverty or infrastructure. Even so, it is still the continent where other economies are desperate to gain a foothold.

More in our #IndiaAfrica summit coverage:

India can learn from Rwanda! Seriously?

Cut the noise. Here's what Ethiopia says about #IndiaAfrica

#IndiaAfricaSummit could be a game changer. Here's why

#IndiaAfrica: What Africa Expects Out of India

#IndiaAfricaSummit: Don't just stand, go in and deliver

#IndiaAfrica: India can learn from genocide-torn Rwanda's amazing progress

First published: 28 October 2015, 11:54 IST

Africa India investment investors business growth GDP Europe population jobs city urban oil

Sourjya Bhowmick @sourjyabhowmick

Born and raised in Kolkata, Sourjya is all about the numbers. He uses data to contextualise stories on a broad range of topics. Formerly with the Hindustan Times and IndiaSpend, any time not spent researching and writing is spent reading non-fiction and tackling his unending collection of films. An alumnus of Presidency College, Kolkata, he has a post-grad degree in Political Science from Calcutta University and was actively involved in student politics. He's a fan of Tintin comics, Germany's football team, Mohun Bagan and Old Monk.