[/quote]Within the last three years, over $20bn (N3.2tn) Foreign Direct Investment has been attracted into the Nigerian economy, the Federal Government has said.

The figure was revealed on Monday in Abuja during a world press conference on the 24th World Economic Forum on Africa which Nigeria will host next year in Nigeria.

The summit, scheduled for Abuja, will be the first time the WEF will be held in West Africa

The N3.2tn invested in the Nigerian economy within the last three years represents 10 per cent of the entire African continent FDI.

The Coordinating Minister for the Economy and Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, while addressing journalists, said the forum with the theme ‘Forging inclusive growth, creating jobs’, would further help to attract more investments into the economy.

She said the forum offered an unprecedented opportunity for Nigeria to showcase its vast economic opportunities to the world and deepen dialogue on economic reforms between the international and Nigerian private sector.

The theme, according to her, was chosen because it aligns perfectly with the medium and long-term aspirations and commitment of the Federal Government.

She said hosting the economic conference next year would not only ensure that Nigeria remains the largest recipient of FDI in Africa, but ensuring that the investments it attracts are broad based.

This, she added, would help generate millions of jobs for the youthful population.

The minister said, “The WEF is an organisation that has been in existence for more than 25 years. The reason and objectives is to bring together top-class Chief Executive Officers of big organisation in the world together with government in order to forge partnership that can lead to investments to the improvement of the private sector in given countries so that you can have improved job creation and improvement of standards of living.

“We are very honoured and it’s very clear the reason why Nigeria made the list of this conference and the reason is that they find it very fascinating the developments that are happening in the Nigerian economy.”[quote]