According to a report by Deutsche Welle, the majority of Germany’s Africa-based enterprises have not endured harsh impact as a result of the Ebola epidemic. The report examined a survey by the German-African Business Association (AV), which revealed that the expectations of businesses registered in the association were positive, although doing business in Africa is most often described as “risky.”

While 53 percent of Africa-based German businesses looked forward to steady growth, only 15 percent of them expected to reach a decline.

“Companies that have been in Africa for a long time are not scared of the epidemic, especially since out of the 54 countries in Africa, only three have been affected by Ebola,” Stefan Liebing, AV chairman said in the Deutsche Welle report.

The AV survey also noted that of Germany’s 600 Africa-based businesses that are registered with the association, 56 percent of them experienced unchanged business operation during the Ebola outbreak.

While Ebola hit Africa the hardest in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea offering a death toll of just over 8,000 — the majority of business operations by German enterprises take place in Ethiopia, South Africa, Kenya, Nigeria and Angola, Deutsche Welle reported.

Four years ago, Andreas Wenzel, then Afrika-Verein’s senior vice president and director for southern Africa talked to Frontier Market Intelligence about Germany’s heightening interest in doing business in Africa.

“We have noticed growing interest in Africa over the last few years. There are positive developments in African politics: better governance, lower inflation and a stronger focus on private business. Although there are still a lot of problems, the outlook is positive. The increased interest of countries like Brazil, China and India in Africa is also making German companies consider opportunities in Africa,” Wenzel said.

The majority of current business and investment relations between Germany and Africa stemmed from colonial period trade agreements, Wenzel told Frontier Market Intelligence. Automobile companies including BMW, VW and Daimler — which operate out of South Africa — and businesses within North Africa’s energy sector have achieved much growth and success.

“The choice of Kenya as the most attractive market alongside economic heavy-weight South Africa shows that Germany is now also taking a closer look at smaller economies,” Christoph Kannengiesser, AV chief executive said in the Deutsche Welle report. “But there are still many companies that are hesitant and will therefore miss opportunities.”

Last summer, when the Ebola outbreak was in the early stages, Forbes reported that international business operations would probably dodge major losses. Though for future global partnerships and business endeavors, the outbreak created room for adjusting smaller aspects of business such as “travel security protocol”  and “knowledge transfer systems,” which attribute to the overall flow of business operations.