EY, a global business and financial advisory firm, says it is anticipating that Nigeria will continue to be a hub for investment in Africa.

As a result, it said the country might emerge the most attractive developing market investment destination in the world in coming years.

EY stated this in a special report issued for the World Economic Forum on Africa holding in Abuja next month.

The report, entitled ‘Africa by numbers’, reads in part, “Given the continued growth rates and the recent Gross Domestic Product rebasing, an improving business environment, a portfolio of active infrastructure projects with a value close to $100bn, and, of course, a population of about 170 million people, Nigeria’s billing as a powerhouse in a dynamic, high growth region is certainly justified.

“As a result, we anticipate that Nigeria will continue to be a key hub for investment into Africa, and is likely to emerge as one of the most attractive developing market investment destinations in the world in coming years.”

The report noted that while many other emerging markets were suffering from the consequences of global monetary tightening, the Nigerian economy had remained remarkably robust.

EY said it recently developed a map to illustrate the economic vulnerability of a group of 25 different emerging markets, drawing on previously published research into currency and banking crises, and ranking each country under seven indicators of risk (current account balance, government debt, inflation, currency volatility, etc).

According to these indicators, Nigeria has the third highest overall ranking among all the emerging markets and is also well ahead of the aggregate ranking for the United States, Japan and Germany.

“This strong macroeconomic management, coupled with progress in the political domain, provides us with confidence that overall growth rates will continue in the five to six per cent zone for the foreseeable future,” the report added.

“The privatisation of the power sector should significantly increase levels of investment into electricity generation and distribution, and could transform the business environment in Nigeria,” it noted.

Meanwhile, EY said the fourth edition of its annual attractiveness survey – Africa 2014, would be launched on May 15.

The group recalled that in the first edition of the Africa attractiveness survey 2011, it had declared it, “Time for Africa! We also said that there was a window of opportunity to act before others woke up to the African opportunity. Today, that window is closing, and the cost of entering African markets is already beginning to rise.

“Companies with an already established presence continue to expand and entrench their advantages. In our opinion, the risk of missing this window is likely to be far greater than any of the risks you will encounter in actually doing business in Africa.”

Source: Punch (by Oyetunji Abioye)