Recession pulls FDI 69% down

Yesterday, the government's key foreign investment agency unveiled lacklustre FDI figures for 2009 indicating a 68.8 percent decline in investment to P319.7 million. This was against a target of P550 million for the year.In comparison, in the 2008/09 financial year, BEDIA facilitated foreign investment in Botswana worth P539.9 million against a target of P500 million. Over the same period, these investments created 2, 044 jobs while for the 2009/10 reporting period the P319.7 capital investment created 225 jobs. During both years, the parastatal had targeted the creation of 2, 500 jobs.

Explaining the slump, BEDIA Chief Executive Officer, Jacob Nkate, said like similar organisations around the world, their ability to lure investors suffered in 2009 as a direct result of the global recession.