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Brand South Africa welcomes South Africa’s performance in the 2017 A.T. Kearney Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) Confidence Index, as well as in the Africa Investment Index 2016 by Quantum Global's independent research arm, Quantum Global Research Lab.

South Africa has made a comeback in the 2017 A.T. Kearney Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) Confidence Index, and has been ranked as the fourth most attractive investment destination in Africa according to the latest Africa Investment Index 2016 by Quantum Global's independent research arm, Quantum Global Research Lab published on Wednesday.

The Quantum Global report is constructed from macroeconomic and financial indicators and the World Bank Group's Ease of Doing Business Indicators, and also averages the country's macroeconomic and financial indicators rankings on the six different factors. The report advocates that South Africa received the number four ranking on the Index because it scored well on the growth factor of GDP, ease of doing business in the country and significant population.

Reflecting upon South Africa’s significant improvement, Brand South Africa’s CEO Dr Kingsley Makhubela said, “As a nation, we are cognisant of the role of all South Africans in building the country’s reputation and competitiveness and these improvements emphasise that South Africa is a competent and competitive investment destination and that we are indeed open for business.  This also reinforces perceptions about South Africans, from a range of other studies, as hardworking and resilient - despite recent challenges relating to credit downgrades.”

The 2017 A.T. Kearney Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) Confidence Index report said that while overall FDI flows to Africa decreased 5% in 2016 to an estimated $51 billion, South Africa bucked the overall regional trend, with UNCTAD estimating its FDI inflows increased 38% in 2016. South Africa made a comeback in the Index – rounding out the Index in the 25th spot.  “This is likely as a result of improving short-term economic prospects and the long-term investment potential in the country’s manufacturing sector,” A.T. Kearney’s report said.

Known as the melting pot of diversity and inspiring new ways that have shaped the nations young democracy, this year - World Economic Forum on Africa will be held in South Africa under the theme ‘Driving economic transformation in Africa through inclusive growth models’ on 03 – 05 May 2017 in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal.

Commenting on this Dr Makhubela concluded: “As a global partner, South Africa commits to the stated objectives of this conference, and it is our hope that this platform will create an enabling environment where we can all share insights on how to better improve the current landscape and map out innovative tactics to accelerate inclusive growth while bringing about sustainable development in the future.”

Issued by Brand South Africa