Not many know a small country Republic of Equatorial Guinea is fast becoming a rich nation thanks to bounty of oil and natural gas. Statistics is revealing. The IMF estimates pegs its GDP close to US$ 14 billion as latest as 2018, which is way ahead of most of the African countries. With that tempo of growth aided by oil and gas, the country will soon catch up with relatively richer island nations like Seychelles and Mauritius. Incidentally, it is the third largest oil producer in sub-Saharan Africa after Nigeria and Angola.
Its capital Malabo will host the Oil & Gas Meeting Day for services companies in October this year, where a large number of oil industry players are likely to assemble.
The central African country, which hit the oil jackpot in 1998, is made up of a mainland called Rio Muni, accosted by five islands including Bioko, where the capital Malabo is located. The old Spanish colony with a population of slightly more than 1.2 million has only a land mass of slightly over 10,000 sq miles as its area. The French and Spanish speaking country has an assortment of population-very rich and poor and has the longest serving political leader. The country is now seeking foreign investments from all corners and is a votary of intra Africa investments and trade. Recently, country’s Minister of Mines and Hydrocarbons Gabriel Mbaga Obiang at the African and international industry stakeholders meeting , called on African national oil companies to engage with one another constantly to explore joint-venture opportunities and projects across the continent. It is also an OPEC member.
The country is also focusing on health and education, apart from promoting manufacturing sector particularly small and medium enterprises as a strategy to diversify the industrial base.
