Dubai's economy has long been dependent on its real estate and tourism sectors but, in a bid to diversify, the emirate has started focusing on logistics, financial services and energy, with government-backed initiatives – including an airport city, a financial free zone and a new solar park – driving the rapid growth of each of these sectors.

Angola, one of Africa's economic success stories over the past decade, is keen to diversify its economy beyond oil. But are investors interested?

Dubai, Tel Aviv and Abu Dhabi have claimed the top three spots in fDi Magazine’s Middle East Cities of the Future 2012/13.

Speaking to fDi at the IMF/World Bank annual meetings in Tokyo, finance ministers from Côte d’Ivoire, Lesotho, Rwanda and Uganda discuss the very different challenges their countries face when it comes to attracting investment from both stagnant developed markets and newly active emerging markets, particularly those within Africa. 

The property crash that hit Dubai in 2008 put an end to years of rapid growth. While these wounds are not yet fully healed, the emirate is returning to strength and is retaining its allure to investors as the safest of havens with the finest infrastructure in the Middle East.

Dubai’s free zones are drawing in businesses unfamiliar with the Middle East, thanks to a combination of an impressive infrastructure, sound business advice being on offer and low taxation.