Foreign direct investment into Africa reached approximately $70 billion in 2025, according to UNCTAD’s World Investment Report 2026, down from an exceptional $94 billion in 2024 but still the third-highest annual total since 1990 and roughly a third above the continent’s long-term average. Egypt remained the largest recipient for a fourth consecutive year with about $15.5 billion, driven by energy, real estate and green-transition projects including the Ras El-Hekma development. Guinea’s inflows more than quintupled to roughly $8 billion on bauxite and iron ore mining investment, while Nigeria posted a 148 percent jump to about $4 billion, driven mainly by oil and gas deals including one project worth roughly $2 billion. Central Africa bucked the trend, with inflows falling 21 percent to $4.8 billion as DRC investment declined. Globally, FDI rose 6 percent to $1.624 trillion, with developed economies capturing most of the rebound — underscoring that Africa’s investment story is increasingly about a narrow set of resource- and energy-linked deals rather than broad-based inflows.
Details
Key Signal
FDI inflows to Africa fell 26% year-on-year to $70bn but remain historically strong, with capital increasingly concentrated in mining, oil & gas and a handful of large deals rather than broad-based across sectors.
What Is Changing
After 2024's exceptional $94bn total (inflated by Egypt's $35bn Ras El-Hekma deal), 2025 FDI normalised downward but stayed structurally high; Guinea and Nigeria posted standout gains while DRC and Central Africa declined.
Why It Matters
Investors are concentrating capital in energy, infrastructure, technology and critical minerals — sectors central to Project Herald's coverage — meaning the countries and sectors attracting capital now are a live signal for where contractor, financing and procurement opportunity will follow.
Outlook
UNCTAD notes the number of announced greenfield projects rose even as their average value fell, suggesting broader investor engagement through smaller deals; expect continued Gulf and Asian investor interest, with African LDCs alone attracting roughly $33bn in 2025.
Key Risks
Investment remains heavily concentrated in a small number of economies and resource-linked mega-deals, leaving many African economies structurally underinvested; a repeat of 2024's one-off mega-deal effect makes year-on-year comparisons volatile.
What Happens Next
UNCTAD and AfDB country-level breakdowns through 2026; monitor whether smaller, broader-based greenfield project growth continues.
Commercial Opportunity
Signals where contractors, financiers and suppliers should focus origination efforts — Egypt, Guinea and Nigeria are current momentum leaders, while Central Africa and DRC represent higher-risk, lower-momentum markets right now.