Despite the shadow of conflict and poverty that still lingers and the global economic downturn, sub-Saharan Africa - home to 41% of destitute people living on less than US$1 a day, down from 47% in 1990 - is at a turning point. In many parts of the region, business is thriving and companies are flourishing and investors are smiling, buoyed by higher annual returns and mechanisms put in place to attract domestic and foreign investment.