Although the countries and regions of Africa are attracting foreign direct investment as never before, they still need to do more to increase their attractiveness to investors. “People see potential in Africa,” pointed out KPMG International chairperson Michael Andrews on Tuesday. “The reality is that there are still of lot of questions that have to be asked about infrastructure, energy [and management capacity]. Africa is still in the middle and third quartile of competitivenness.”

Absa Bank CEO Maria Ramos, speaking in the same debate, affirmed that the countries of the continent needed to invest more in infrastructure and education. “Even through the crisis we’ve just come through, we’re still going through, Africa has not come through it unscathed, but Africa has come through it relatively well,” she stated, cautioning that Africa is a big continent composed of very different countries, each with its own risks and opportunities. “There are too many barriers to entry between the countries of this continent. There is far too much red tape.”

Successful development of the various African regional trade groupings was important. “If you break down borders, make the trade zones more accessible, you’ll attract more investment,” said Andrews.

“It [infrastructure] has been a massive constraint,” said Nigerian energy company Sahara Group CEO Tonye Cole. “Investment in areas which would increase competitiveness is lacking. You see governments holding on to infrastructure development to the detriment of the economy.” One of the problems, he highlighted, was that African governments tend to believe that the private sector seeks to “milk” any infrastructure they take over. “There is an issue of trust.”

“We must get markets functioning,” urged Gordon Institute of Business Science director Professor Nick Binedell. “We must develop local business. To do that, we need skilled government officials and skilled business people. There are some good business schools in Africa, not [just] in South Africa.”

Binedell and Ramos both highlighted that infrastructure, in addition to railways and ports and telecommunications and so on, also included financial structures and functioning financial markets, which, in turn, required a proper and effective regulatory framework. Ramos also stressed the importance of innovation in increasing the continent’s competitiveness.

According to the International Monetary Fund, seven of the ten fastest growing economies this year are African. “The African resource economies have really fired up in recent years,” observed Binedell. Add to this the rise of the African middle classes and the fact that Western economies are currently in a major “deleveraging” process, the result is that foreign investors see Africa as “a market they must be in,” averred Andrews.

Andrews, Bindell, Cole and Ramos were participating in the CNBC Africa/KPMG Debate TV programme on Tuesday morning.