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Ghana was ranked as one of the top 10 attractive investment destinations in Africa in 2019, despite the turbulent clean-up of the banking sector, in which nine banks were liquidated.
A study by Rand Merchant Bank Ltd (RMB), FirstRand Limited's investment and finance bank in South Africa, ranked the country among the top 10 destinations due to the expected strong growth.
It shows that the country's economic growth will be driven mainly by the hydrocarbon sector and that oil and gas production will continue to increase.
In its latest annual study titled "Where to invest in Africa," the Johannesburg-based RMB said: "Ghana has strong growth rates focused on the oil and gas sector, while growth in the non-oil sector is sustained through pro-business reforms. "
Nigeria and Côte d'Ivoire are the other two West African countries in the top 10.
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Bank weaknesses
The other top 10 countries are Egypt, South Africa, Morocco, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda and Tanzania.
The findings show, however, that Ghana has moved from fifth to ninth in the 2019 ranking, mainly as a result of a downward revision of the 2018 growth rate by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
The RMB badysts and co-authors of the study, Ms. Celeste Fauconnier and Mr. Neville Mandimika, explained that this decline was also due to the need for the country to focus on correcting the weaknesses of its banking sector .
"The competing economies have seen greater improvements in both the economic and operational environment indices," said Ms. Fauconnier and Mr. Mandimika.
"The structural strength could help Ghana reach its growth forecasts for 2019," they added.
In the 2019 budget, the government aims to grow the economy by 7.6% this year.
In April 2018, the IMF reduced the outlook for 2018 from an estimated 8.9% in October 2017 to 6.3%.
Mr. Victor Yaw Asante, Head of Corporate, Investment and Investment Banking at First National Bank Ghana, said lack of access to finance, corruption, poor governance, and inadequate and efficient infrastructure remained fundamental problems for companies. Africa.
"In Ghana, for example, private sector investment is weak and could change with more business environment reforms, increased infrastructure, and financial market development," he added.
Infrastructure deficit
The latest report is the eighth edition of Where to invest in Africa.
He also showed that an efficient infrastructure was crucial to discover the opportunities and unlock the growth potential of Africa.
According to the World Bank, the lack of efficient infrastructure reduces up to 2.6% of the average per capita growth rate in Africa and weighs heavily on human development.
The latest estimate of the African Development Bank's infrastructure needs is between $ 130 billion and $ 170 billion a year, but available capital on the continent is insufficient to meet this goal, said Fauconnier.
She added that the shortfall was an opportunity for companies involved in the development or financing of infrastructure projects.
In badessing the most attractive investment environments in Africa, the RMB again examined two important conditions for a sustainable investment, namely: economic activity and the operating environment.
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