Kenya beat Uganda last year as a favourable destination for collective schemes looking to make investments in various equity, according to a report released by consulting firm, Deloitte.

Kenya came in ahead of its East African peers in attracting private equity firms with 12 of 26 deals recorded in the region between December 2013 and February last year.

Kenya raked in $111 million, with Rwanda coming in second with $40 million, Tanzania $4.9 million and lastly Uganda fetching only $3.8 million.

The report, 2014 East Africa Private Equity Confidence Survey, revealed that majority of the deals focused on agribusiness, healthcare and the financial sector targeting small and medium enterprises (SMEs).

It pointed to the investment climate as one of the major factors that drove private equity.

In East Africa, Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania all have experienced a decline in investor focus compared to 2013. However, Kenya remained the number one country that most investors are focusing on.

“There is also growing interest in Ethiopia, which has recently started loosening its strict policy on foreign ownership/investments,” read the report which noted that much as the core EAC economies (Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania) received almost equal level of attention from investors. There was reduced focus on Tanzania and Rwanda in 2014.

It revealed that private equity investor focus was mainly primed on the food and beverage, agribusiness, retail, healthcare and pharmaceuticals, and financial services sectors.

“There was a significant decrease in focus on real estate, reflecting recent reports indicating that the previous boom in the industry may be tapering off,” revealed the survey.