Foreign direct investment (FDI) into Burundi grew 4 percent to $104 million in 2011, due to improved reforms on investment procedures, the country's investment board said on Tuesday.
Much of the investment went into tourism, agro-businesses and the processing industry. The coffee and tea producing nation collected $100 million last year in FDI.
"Previously, nine procedures were required in order to start a business, but with the new investment law, only two procedures are needed," Liberat Mfumukeko, general manager of the Burundi Investment Agency (API), said.
"The time period to start a business was reduced from 32 days to 2 days only," he told a news conference.
Mfumukeko said Burundi had made large strides in attracting foreign investors because in 2009 FDI did not exceed $20 million.
Domestic and foreign investment combined came to 229 billion francs in 2011, down from 261 billion francs a year earlier.
"This year, 54 projects were processed compared to 91 projects in 2010. The 91 files included some 57 old projects treated before the creation of the Investment Agency," said Mfumukeko.
API was established in 2010.
Burundi moved up to 169th in the World Bank's Doing Business 2012 report from 181 a year earlier. The report ranks the ease of doing business in 183 economies worldwide.