A month before Laurent Kabila marched into the Zairian capital of Kinshasa to seize presidential power, officials from Arkansas-based American Mineral Fields were meeting with the rebel leader in territory he had already captured in southern Zaire's copper belt. Although the barriers to investment in Africa remain imposing, hints of change are in the air. And the bulk of the money coming into Africa is concentrated in oil and mineral projects that offer big, quick returns but do little to build an economic infrastructure that encourages further growth. But the uptick in activity in Africa may nonetheless signal the beginning of a notable shift in investors' longstanding attitudes toward the continent. Sub-Saharan economies grew at an average of 4.9 percent in 1996, while Southeast Asia's thriving economies showed signs of slowing.
Most economists predict substantially higher foreign investment in coming years in Africa.
OPIC is an independent government agency that promotes investment in developing economies, often by joining in as an equity partner in projects that U.S. firms initiate. Contracts are often subject to the whim of local potentates or bribable officials. Yet there has been a remarkable shift away from the Marxist mind-set that once restricted foreign ownership or imposed confiscatory taxes on foreign investment in many African nations. The establishment of markets is an important symbolic step, even if action remains notably tranquil on many. Yoweri Museveni, the president of Uganda, is considered the leader of the new breed of economically astute African leaders.