An overwhelming majority of opinion leaders expect growth in merger and acquisition (M&A) activity in Africa to continue in the coming months, with telecommunications and infrastructure viewed as the leading investment sectors, a survey has found.

The survey, carried out by global business advisory firm FTI Consulting ahead of the 2015 World Economic Forum (WEF) on Africa, suggested that East and West Africa were most likely to be the popular destinations for investors.

Further, 76% of respondents viewed Nigeria as the next gateway for investing in Africa in five years’ time, toppling South Africa from the top spot.

Further, 88% believed investment activity across Africa would rise, with the same number saying they expected an improvement, particularly in sub-Saharan African investment activity.

One-third of the business leaders attending this year’s WEF on Africa felt that greater investment activity was essential to their strategic growth prospects.

Other key findings from the survey included that only 45% of respondents viewed investment prospects for Central Africa in a positive light.

Half of those surveyed viewed the business opportunity that the continent offered as important but risky, with many believing that businesses needed to become more effective communicators and that African governments should be more realistic about what investments could achieve.

Six out of ten survey respondents believed businesses were not adequately communicating their contribution to their country’s economic stability, a key finding, given that 65% believed that African business leaders were more effective voices than African politicians in attracting investment to the continent.

Further, more than two-thirds of those surveyed said host government expectations of investment were unreasonable and that government reassurance and support for investment projects could reap greater rewards for Africa in the longer term.

“Since the 2008 financial crisis, we have seen a steady improvement in the prospects for M&A activity and investment opportunities in Africa. This survey confirms that Africa remains important as an international investment destination though there is much that needs to be done by both governments and businesses in Africa to ensure they understand what the international investment community is looking for from African countries. There also needs to be a greater focus on enhancing intra-African investment and M&A,” FTI Consulting Strategic Communications MD Max Gebhardt said.