Kagame in Germany for investment summit

President Paul Kagame on Monday arrived in Berlin, Germany where he joined other African leaders for the G20 Compact with Africa Investment Summit. Launched in 2017, the G20 Compact with Africa (CwA) was initiated under the German G20 Presidency to promote private investment in Africa, including in infrastructure. Twelve African nations have so far joined the initiative and besides Rwanda, others are; Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Egypt, Ethiopia, Ghana, Guinea, Morocco, Senegal, Togo and Tunisia. The initiative is demand-driven and open to all African countries. This years events will begin with an Investment Summit which will highlight investments resulting from the G20 Compact with Africa partnerships, reads part of a statement from the Office of the President. According to the statement, Rwanda will present its partnership with Volkswagen and Siemens, as investments that resulted from this partnership. The two global manufacturing giants already have presence in Rwanda with Volkswagen having established an assembly plant in Kigali. Later in the afternoon (Tuesday), German Chancellor Angela Merkel will host a conference for Heads of State from partner countries to discuss the Compact with Africa, the statement adds. According to figures from Rwanda Development Board (RDB), German business interests in Rwanda have been expanding over the past few years. From 2000 to September 2019, the RDB has registered 17 German investments (totalling above $257 million) with interests in a wide spectrum of sectors. The investments are in energy, mining, services, construction, ICT, agro-processing and manufacturing. On the continent, while Foreign Direct Investments (FDIs) continue to plummet, Africa continues to enjoy a growing number of them. Available statistics show that in 2018, Africa recorded a growth of nearly 11 per cent valued at USD46 billion. editor@newtimesrwanda.com

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Kagame in Germany for investment summit