Zimbabwe named as one of the four riskiest African countries

Four resource-rich African countries ranked among the riskiest nations for companies to work in because of corruption and a lack of respect for the rule of law and property rights, a risk analysis group said.

The Democratic Republic of Congo ranks fourth, Zimbabwe fifth, Sudan seventh and Angola ninth out of 23 countries classified as "extreme risk" by Maplecroft, a UK-based company.

Corruption was "an area of particular concern" for companies in all four countries, it said in a statement yesterday. Graft was "endemic" in Sudan and might fund militias in the north African country who perpetrated violence, Maplecroft said.

"Companies operating there risk being accused of complicity with the state unless strict risk management strategies are implemented," it said.

Greater implementation of Sharia law in the north and the possible renegotiation of oil contracts in a newly independent south were additional risks, Maplecroft said.

In Angola, which vies with Nigeria to be the continent's largest crude producer, President Jose Eduardo dos Santos's criticism of corruption in the oil industry last November was "unlikely to significantly reduce investor uncertainty in the short term".

Congo is facing two cases at the International Court of Arbitration in Paris amid claims it illegally transferred the licences of copper and oil concessions to unknown off-shore companies.

The cases caused political risk insurance premiums to increase by 40% last year, according to the African Trade Insurance Agency.

In Zimbabwe, mining companies may face a new law compelling them to sell at least 51% of their shares to black Zimbabweans.