The African Capital Markets Development Workshop, organized by the Economic Commission for Africa, in partnership with the Rand Merchant Bank, closed yesterday in Johannesburg, South Africa, after three days of intensive discussions.

The workshop underlined the importance of capital markets for Africa's development, and, in order to build capacity for African capital markets, identified the following priorities:

1. Establish a stable political environment; appropriate and effective legal and regulatory frameworks; sound macro-economic environment; a sound tax policy; a smooth and secure settlement system and an active money market.

2. Encourage the regional integration of African capital markets to overcome most of the current constraints of African capital markets.

3. Educate the general public, as well as stakeholders and policy-makers on the development of capital markets.

4. Encourage Governments to play a role in the development of the markets through protection of investors, enhancing transparency in the budget and borrowing process and ensuring fair, efficient and transparent markets.

Speaking at the workshop, Mr. Patrick Asea, Director of the Economic and Social Policy, ECA, said: "We need to be ambitious. We must pursue capital market development that creates in each country a diverse and competitive financial services industry that fosters innovation and growth of national economics as they become increasingly integrated in the global economy. This integration itself offers substantial opportunities for expanding the range of financial products and services available in African countries." He added that the focus must be on building capital markets, which provide new means for companies to strengthen and diversify their financing structure, reduce financing costs and better manage financial and other risks.

Also speaking on the occasion, Mr. Paul Harris, Chairman of Rand Merchant Bank, said the African renaissance being promoted by President Thabo Mbeki and other African leaders will not happen unless the continent develops its soft infrastructure - i.e., sound, well-regulated financial markets. " Hard infrastructure such as roads, buildings and telecommunications are the easy part," said Harris. "Soft infrastructure is much harder to put in place. It involves the creation of a sound legal and regulatory framework free from political interference - one in which investors can have confidence and contracts can be enforced."

This was the first in a series of regional workshops being organized by ECA on capital markets development and was targeted at southern and eastern African countries.

In attendance were over 60 participants and resource persons, from Africa and Europe, including policymakers, renowned academics, senior government officials, security market regulators, CEOs of stock exchanges and other top private sector executives from Eastern and Southern Africa.