“I think the African continent and most of the nations welcome foreign investment. When I moved in three years back, I was amazed at the welcome we received in every country, including Nigeria. In Nigeria of late we see a lot of stress in the upper north, where Boko Haram had been targeting cell sites, switching centers. And the support that we have received from the government has been tremendous. Security has been beefed up. People have been reassured, especially foreigners who are working there. And that’s what counts in the end,” he said.

Mittal said that it only took about 80 days to get a mobile operation up and running in Rwanda.

“Will Africa have issues from time to time which will scare investors, which will worry investors? That’s a fact of life. There are some pockets – a new one developing in Mali now, upper Nigeria, some of the parts of Congo and the northwestern border. Issues will be there. But investors go with their eyes open. The opportunity is big. The prize to be won in the end is very big and the growth is there. At the end of the day, all emerging markets offer growth. But today really the last bastion of big growth is the African continent,” he said.

Among those concerned about security in Africa is Louise Arbour, head of the International Crisis Group and former chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Tribunals for the Former Yugoslavia and Rwanda. She said that despite Africa’s economic growth, many leaders and regional economic groups are devoting more of their time and attention to resolving conflict. Those driving factors include competition for resources, organized crime, radical Islamist militias and piracy off the Somali coast and in the Gulf of Guinea.