DHL plans to invest millions in Sub-Saharan Africa in 2015

DHL Express continues to see Sub-Saharan Africa as one of the most promising areas for growth which will contribute to the company’s global development.

Although the number of foreign direct investments (FDI) decreased by roughly 8.4 percent in 2014, capital investment into the continent increased to $128 billion, an increase of 136 percent year on year, according to the recently published EY 2015 Africa Attractiveness Survey.

The average investment increased to $174.5 million per project, up from $67.8 million in 2013.

Charles Brewer, Managing Director of DHL Express Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) highlighted that FDI in the region is being stimulated by a number of megadeals, as opposed to a large number of smaller deals, meaning that big money still has a lot of clout in these circumstances.

“The perception of investing in Africa has traditionally been rather negative, coupled with the fear of the unknown. However, in 2014, traditional investors refocused their attention on the continent, attracted by its strong macroeconomic growth and outlook, improving business environment, a rising consumer class, abundant natural resources and infrastructure development. These factors have resulted in global capital investment and job creation hitting an all-time high during 2014 on the continent.”

Brewer said that infrastructure is critical for ensuring the effective functioning of the continent; underdeveloped infrastructure drives up logistics costs, and it is estimated that supply chain costs are up to nine times more expensive in Africa in comparison to other regions in the world.”

“With increased FDI and continued macro-economic growth, I believe that Africa will be an economic powerhouse in the future. The region is abound with untapped opportunities and has much scope for growth.”

“DHL Express continues to invest significantly in SSA in order to ‘Lift The Platform’, to expand our capabilities and cater for continued growth across all markets, with planned investment of millions of Euros across SSA in 2015.”

“Continued focus and investment in market-leading infrastructure will better connect Africa to the rest of the world, and create more opportunities for African businesses, allowing them to trade across borders and with new target markets. DHL Express is committed to not only connecting others to Africa, one of the world’s largest frontiers for growth, but to making the rest of the world the next frontier for Africa,” concluded Brewer.