An official report disclosed the increase of foreign investment registered at the GIA (GIA) in Yemen at a rate of 57 percent in 2009 than that of 2008.

The report, issued by the GIA, said that the overall investment projects registered at the Authority and its branches consisted of 272 projects costing 314.1 billion, with fixed assets totaling 102 billion. The investment projects have provided more than 10,364 jobs.

The governmental report pointed out that the foreign investments amounted last year to 34 projects, costing 130.9 billion.

It asserted that the foreign capital formed 14.59 percent of the overall registered projects during last year with fixed assets of 130.9 billion.

According to reports, the gulf investments registered at the authority and its branches, increased last year to 14 investment projects costing YR 133 billion, in comparison to YR 60.7 billion in 2008, with an increase rate amounting to 86 percent.

The report explains that the projects was distributed to a Qatari project costing YR 105.5 billion, and seven Saudi projects costing YR 4.3 billion, four Kuwaiti projects costing YR 3 billion 582.9 million and two Emirate projects costing YR 159 million. The report turned attention that the overall Arabic investment's cost rose to YR 130 billion, at a rate that mounts to 99. 83 percent of the overall foreign investment capital registered at the investment authority in 2009, whereas the middle Eastern and European investment rates reached approximately 0.17 percent.

The official report said that Arab and foreign projects were divided into four Iraqi projects with an investment capital of YR 11 billion, two Lebanese projects with an investment capital of YR 138 million, two Jordanian projects of YR 76 million, a Syrian project costing YR 20 million, an Egyptian project costing YR 28 million, a Libyan project costing YR 5 billion, and a Dutch project costing YR 122 million.

There other projects include an Italian project of YR 151 million, three Turkish projects costing YR 93 million, an Iranian project costing YR 55 million, a Chinese project costing YR 49 million and a Malaysian projects costing YR 20 million and YR 27 million, consecutively.

The industrial projects occupied the first position among the other registered investment projects. Their number was 126 industrial projects costing 92 billion. They were followed by the service projects in second place with 36 projects costing YR175 billion. The tourism projects’ number was 36 costing YR 38 billion. The agricultural projects mounted to 35 projects costing YR 5 billion. The fishery sector came at the end of the list with five projects at a cost of YR one billion.

Salah al-Atar, GIA’s manager, considered the investment projects in Yemen to be gaining grounds due to the GIA’s efforts for activating the four main functions realized in the policy advocacy, building a positive Yemeni image, investment facilitation and attraction through the usage of several modern promotional techniques that cope with international investment developments. They include informing the businessmen of the facilities that the Yemeni government provides for creating a safe attractive environment for capitals. However, local analysts, together with gulf and foreign ones attributed the growing investment projects in Yemen during the previous year, which include the gulf and foreign ones, despite the international crisis the challenges facing Yemen to the potentials that Yemen posses for attracting the foreign, Gulf and Arabic investments.