Kigali, Feb 13 (IANS): Rwanda recorded a decline of 47.1 per cent in investments in 2020, from $2.46 billion in 2019 to $1.3 billion, the Rwanda Development Board (RDB) said.

RDB attributed the decline to the Covid-19 pandemic that affected the global economy. According to the statement on Thursday, real estate and construction, and manufacturing accounted for 48 per cent and 20 per cent respectively of investments in 2020, and other sectors that attracted significant investments included agriculture, information communication technology (ICT), energy, mining and financial services, the Xinhua news agency reported.

Foreign direct investments contributed 51 percent of the total investments registered in 2020, while joint ventures and local investments contributed 29 per cent and 20 per cent, respectively, it said.

"The year 2020 was challenging for investment and business in general. Despite the global economic slowdown resulting from the Covid-19 pandemic, Rwanda registered significant investments in key sectors of our economy," said RDB CEO Claire Akamanzi in the statement.

The government of Rwanda is committed to supporting business recovery through initiatives like the economic recovery fund.

The investment arm of the Rwandan government last week said 24 more companies from China were registered in Rwanda last year, bringing in investments totalling $300 million.