EGX, Lusaka Stock Exchange sign MoU in ASEA conference

CAIRO – 20 November 2017: The Egyptian Exchange and Zambia's Lusaka Stock Exchange signed Monday a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to increase cooperation, during the events of 21st annual conference of the African Securities Exchanges Association (ASEA).

The conference kicked off Monday with the attendance of representatives from stock exchanges of 27 countries and senior vice president of the World Bank Group Mahmoud Mohieldin.

Opening the conference on behalf of Prime Minister Sherif Ismail, Minister of Investment Sahar Nasr said in her speech that Africa will receive $60 billion in foreign direct investment (FDI) in total in 2017.

Nasr stressed on the importance of establishing partnerships between the private sector and international financial institutions in order to achieve development and inject investment in the infrastructure sector.

Some African countries have registered vast progress in their business climate in addition to higher growth expectations in the upcoming years, she added.

"Africa's economy will improve through focusing on real reforms in the investment climate through upgrading legislations [to] fight bureaucracy, combat corruption and focus on entrepreneurship and small and medium projects," Nasr explained.

EGX Chairman Mohamed Farid stated that hosting the ASEA annual event in Cairo comes as part of the entity’s efforts to activate cooperation with the African financial centers.

The two-day conference will discuss issues of capital market industry, market liquidity and financial technology in the capital markets. The sessions will also discuss mechanisms to strengthen governance practices and the role of financial markets in sustainability.