SEC Zimbabwe joins FSD Africa's 'Africa Regulator Support Programme'
Harare, Zimbabwe (PANA) - The Securities and Exchange Commission of Zimbabwe (SEC Zimbabwe) has joined the UK-funded Financial Sector Deepening Africa’s (FSD Africa) flagship Africa Regulator Support Programme.
The programme is part of a continent-wide initiative designed to support capital market regulators to attain international standards.
Commenting about the programme, Head of Office for the UK Department for International Development (DFID) in Zimbabwe and South Africa, Annabel Gerry said DFID was excited about the initiative as it would help unlock a key source of long-term financing for businesses.
“DFID is both excited and proud to be a part of this initiative that will assist in strengthening the SEC’s capacity to regulate the capital market. This will help unlock a key source of long-term financing for businesses that can drive robust and inclusive growth in Zimbabwe,” Gerry said.
The programme comes at a time when Zimbabwe needs fresh lines investment, both domestic and foreign.
As such, the Africa Regulator Support Programme will support an institutional capacity assessment to review SEC Zimbabwe’s operations and identify areas that require strengthening.
Further, the programme will also fund the development of a capital markets master plan that will outline the actions needed to develop the capital market sector.
This will be done to broaden Zimbabwe’s long-term financing base with SEC Zimbabwe engaging in knowledge-sharing activities with capital market regulators across Africa.
SEC Zimbabwe is the regulator for securities in the southern Africa nation.
SEC Zimbabwe chief executive officer Tafadzwa Chinamo said: “the assistance from FSD Africa in kick starting a ground-up rebuilding of Zimbabwe’s Capital and Securities industry could not have come at a better time. We have before Cabinet amendments to the Securities Act which seek to remodel the capital market in line with international best practice”.
“Such is the enormity of the amendments that implementing the regulatory changes implied by the proposed new laws will embrace a wider stakeholder base. It is for this reason the Commission is excited by the assistance from FSD Africa and welcome the prospect of building our capital markets from a position of knowledge and inclusivity,” he said.
The need for higher participation in the capital markets comes as, according to the local financial services firm, Escrow Group, only one percent of the population are in the financial markets.
Out of those involved in the financial markets, there are only 20,000 active investor accounts.
As of Tuesday, the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange (ZSE) recorded a market capitalisation of nearly RTGS$30 billion (US$4,72 billion). Just before the adoption of the RTGS dollar in February, the ZSE market capitalisation was around US$25 billion.
As such, there is vast potential for investing in the capital markets.
Regional Lead, Fragility & Conflict States and Zimbabwe Country Representative FSD Africa, Rufaro Maunze said the Africa Regulator Support Programme will help Zimbabwean households and entrepreneurs access innovative and affordable finance.
FSD Africa director Mark Napier said the programme will broaden the long-term financing base of economy by addressing key challenges and enhancing governance through institutional reforms.
SEC Zimbabwe is the eighth capital market regulator to join the programme, which began in September 2018.
FSD Africa is also implementing the Africa Regulator Support programme in Nigeria, Ghana, Uganda, Kenya, Mozambique, Rwanda and Zambia, as well as in the West African Monetary Union’s Regional Council for Public Savings and Financial Markets.
-0- PANA TZ/AR 19June2019
