FG To Review Capital Market Master Plan

The federal government is to review the Capital Market Master plan in order to align the assumptions and projections with current realities.

Doing so, it stated, is a very important step in redefining the roadmap for stakeholder participation in the Nigerian capital market.

The core objective of the 10-year Capital Master Plan (2015-2025) is to evolve strategies for the improvement of the Nigerian capital market in key areas including investor protection and education, professionalism, product innovation and for the expansion of the capital market’s role in the nation’s economy.

Inaugurating the National Savings Strategy (NSS) workgroup in Abuja, Friday, the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs. Zainab Ahmed, said the Capital Market Master Plan proposed by the NSS is one of the key initiatives to drive capital formation and investment necessary to support entrepreneurs and enterprise development in the urgent task of diversifying the economy and deepening of the market.

According to her, efforts are ongoing to review the master plan to align the assumptions and projections with current realities, adding: “This is indeed a very important step in redefining the road map for stakeholder participation in the Nigerian capital market.

“My expectation, when the review is concluded is that we would have a strategic document that provides a clear pathway that would enable the Nigeria’s capital market achieve the goal to be Africa’s largest, deepest and most liquid capital market contributing not only to Nigeria’s socio-economic development but also serve as a global financial hub offering opportunities to other parts of Africa,” she said.

The minister observed that to lift the equities market, galvanise new start-ups and expand existing projects, there should be a deliberate provision of naira-based risk capital.

“In essence, nurturing, growing and channelling domestic savings to fund the creation of new enterprises will result in rapid economic growth, diversification of the economy, accelerated job creation and increased productivity and output of the Nigerian economy,” the minister stated.

A statement issued by the Special Adviser, Media and Communications to the minister, Yunusa Tanko Abdullahi, said while inaugurating the workgroup, Ahmed listed its terms of reference to include the study of the NSS paper and advise the federal government on the feasibility of the proposals and/or with recommended changes.

It is also to advise on ways and means of mobilising and channelling corporate and individual savings to accelerate domestic capital formation to support entrepreneurs and enterprise development in the urgent task of diversifying the economy and the deepening of the capital market.

Others are to draft a National Working Paper that outlines a detailed roadmap on the implementation of the National Savings Scheme to be submitted for approval by the Federal Executive Council; and to engage all relevant stakeholders and carry out any relevant activity towards the actualisation of the mandate of the working group.

She noted that the members of the working group were carefully selected to ensure a rich combination of skill, experience and competence necessary to deliver on the task at hand.

Members of the inaugurated Federal Working Group of the NSS are Mr. Fola Adeola (Banking & Investment) — Chairman; Dr. Ore Sofekun (Fund & Investment Management); Mrs. Tokunboh Ishmael (Private Equity & Venture Capital), and Mrs. Elizabeth Ngozi Ebi (Stock Brokerage), among others.