The East African Lied That In 2017 Rwanda Received More Foreign Investment Than Its Neighbors

By David Himbara

The East African claims that Rwanda has overtaken Kenya and Uganda in attracting foreign direct investment (FDI). The newspaper says that in 2017, Rwanda received US$1.04 billion in FDI, against Kenya’s US$672 million, and Uganda’s US$700 million. This is bogus.

The East African knowingly lied about foreign investment in East Africa.

The East African manipulated statistics to suit its own ends. In reality, Tanzania received the largest share of foreign direct investment, followed by Uganda, Kenya and then Rwanda.

How do we know the East African knowingly lied?

The East African knowingly lied because it got the investment statistics from the United Nations Conference on Trade And Investment’s 2018 World Investment Report. According to this report, foreign direct investments to the East African countries in 2017 were as follows:

  1. Tanzania — US$1.1 Billion
  2. Uganda — US$700 Million
  3. Kenya — US$672 Million
  4. Rwanda — US$366 Million

One would also expect a reputable newspaper to verify its sources by consulting with credible sources such as the World Bank. According to the World Bank, Uganda received in 2017 US$699 Million; Kenya, US$672 Million; Rwanda, US$293 Million.

And what does the IMF tell us about foreign direct investment in Rwanda?

According to the IMF, something is not right in Rwanda:

“Despite the government’s own concerted efforts to attract FDI, it remains below 3 percent of GDP. The government is aware that the model of public sector-led growth over the past several years will need to be balanced with greater private sector involvement to maintain growth momentum and public debt sustainability.

Dear East African, you are now part of Kagame’s propaganda machine.

If the East African bothered to dig deeper, it would discover that the entire stock of foreign direct investment in Rwanda made over the past twenty years is a mere US$1.6 billion — according to the National Bank of Rwanda. United Nations Conference on Trade and Development puts FDI total stock in Rwanda at US$1.7 billion. There you go — the East African. The joke is on you.