Contrary to the slogans that the official authorities keep announcing, recent developments appear to show that Libya is not yet ready for foreign investment.
Although, on paper, Libya’s legal framework is remarkably open to foreign investment, the reality on the ground can be quite different. This is evidenced by the Ministry of Economy’s slow-walking of several investment applications during the past year, as well as by recent efforts by civil servants within the Ministry to question agreed-upon interpretations of Investment Law provisions that have been settled for decades, creating confusion and doubt in the minds of foreign investors.
In a shocking development, on 13th November 2022, Mr. Gamal Lamouchi, Chairman of the Foreign Investment Board, was detained by security forces at Mitiga Airport, reportedly for being “too open” to the promotion of foreign investment in Libya by seeking to facilitate investment license applications by foreign investors. Mr. Lamouchi remains in custody as of this writing.
The question arises: whose interests are being served by these actions? Certainly not those of the Libyan people.
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