Malawi has attracted 185 million U.S. dollars investment pledges in 2006, representing an increase of 230 percent over the previous year, local newspaper The Nation reported on its website on Saturday.

A total of 46 new companies opened their business within the year, creating over 3,000 jobs for the impoverished southern African country, the paper cited the Malawi Investment Promotion Agency (MIPA) as saying.

MIPA corporate affairs manager Suzanna Mjuweni said most investments were in the areas of manufacturing, tourism, agro- processing, mining, services, agriculture and wood and food processing.

The leading investor is Paladin Africa Limited from Australia with an investment pledge of 130 million dollars for uranium mining project.

AVM Africa Limited, a manufacturing company from Zimbabwe, is second on the list with 12 million dollars worth of investment.

Mjuweni said MIPA is expected to attract more investors in 2007 because the Malawi government is in the process of reviewing the National Investment Policy and the formulation of Private Sector Development Strategy which will both be implemented mid this year.

Source: Xinhua