Burkina Faso seeks Singapore investment
The West African state of Burkina Faso has asked Singapore businesses to invest in the country, it emerged during a visit by President Blaise Compaore, who spoke at the inaugural Burkina Faso-Singapore Business Forumin the city state on April 24, adding that “foreigners have nothing to worry about when investing in the country.”
“Burkina Faso has created a number of legal frameworks in order to promote and protect foreign investments coming to our country. The labour code is also attractive and will protect people working there,” he said.
“It is also easy for investors to repatriate the income that they gain in Burkina Faso. We also have a very good currency, which is connected to the euro, so convertibility is not an issue… All these aspects mean Burkina Faso is a very attractive option for investments,” the president added.
Africa is not an unknown territory for Singapore, though. Compaore’s comments come as Africa is highlighted as the next frontier for Singapore companies to expand to overseas, with International Enterprise (IE) Singapore opening an office in 2013 in Ghana to join one already operating in South Africa.
G Jayakrishnan, IE Singapore group director for Middle East and Africa, noted that political, economic and social stability was increasingly prevalent across Africa.
“While not all countries are at the same stage of development, many African governments have successfully tackled inflation, strengthened national budgets and tightened security to attract more investment and jobs,” he said.
With a population of 17 million and an average gross domestic product expansion of 5.5 per cent annually in the past decade, Burkina Faso is among the many developing nations in Africa that are rapidly gearing up for growth and modernisation, presenting opportunities in sectors such as infrastructure, energy and consumer products.
Compaore said he was looking to find partners from Singapore who can help add value to Burkina Faso’s cotton industry and raise the proportion of its annual crop, which is processed domestically, from the current 1 per cent.
Other areas that Burkina Faso wishes to learn from Singapore’s experience include urban sanitation solutions, vocational training and tourism, he said. The country is also poised to grow its communications and transport infrastructure and is planning to build a new airport.
The West African state of Burkina Faso has asked Singapore businesses to invest in the country, it emerged during a visit by President Blaise Compaore, who spoke at the inaugural Burkina Faso-Singapore Business Forumin the city state on April 24, adding that "foreigners have nothing to worry about when investing in the country." “Burkina Faso has created a number of legal frameworks in order to promote and protect foreign investments coming to our country. The labour code is also attractive and will protect people working there,” he said. “It is also easy for investors to repatriate the income that they...
The West African state of Burkina Faso has asked Singapore businesses to invest in the country, it emerged during a visit by President Blaise Compaore, who spoke at the inaugural Burkina Faso-Singapore Business Forumin the city state on April 24, adding that “foreigners have nothing to worry about when investing in the country.”
“Burkina Faso has created a number of legal frameworks in order to promote and protect foreign investments coming to our country. The labour code is also attractive and will protect people working there,” he said.
“It is also easy for investors to repatriate the income that they gain in Burkina Faso. We also have a very good currency, which is connected to the euro, so convertibility is not an issue… All these aspects mean Burkina Faso is a very attractive option for investments,” the president added.
Africa is not an unknown territory for Singapore, though. Compaore’s comments come as Africa is highlighted as the next frontier for Singapore companies to expand to overseas, with International Enterprise (IE) Singapore opening an office in 2013 in Ghana to join one already operating in South Africa.
G Jayakrishnan, IE Singapore group director for Middle East and Africa, noted that political, economic and social stability was increasingly prevalent across Africa.
“While not all countries are at the same stage of development, many African governments have successfully tackled inflation, strengthened national budgets and tightened security to attract more investment and jobs,” he said.
With a population of 17 million and an average gross domestic product expansion of 5.5 per cent annually in the past decade, Burkina Faso is among the many developing nations in Africa that are rapidly gearing up for growth and modernisation, presenting opportunities in sectors such as infrastructure, energy and consumer products.
Compaore said he was looking to find partners from Singapore who can help add value to Burkina Faso’s cotton industry and raise the proportion of its annual crop, which is processed domestically, from the current 1 per cent.
Other areas that Burkina Faso wishes to learn from Singapore’s experience include urban sanitation solutions, vocational training and tourism, he said. The country is also poised to grow its communications and transport infrastructure and is planning to build a new airport.
