Development Finance Institutions in the SADC Region, make up 10% of global investment financing.
This is according to Elias Magosi, the Executive Secretary of the Southern African Development Community (SADC), who said over US$20 trillion in assets and approximately US$2.4 trillion in annual lending, comes from financial institutions in the Region.
He was speaking at a recently held meeting attended by Ministers Responsible for Finance and Investment as well as Governors of Central Banks from Angola, Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
The meeting was to take stock of the implementation of the Regional Indicative Strategic Development Plan (RISDP) 2020-2030 and the SADC Vision 2050.
During the same week, a report by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), was made public, and it suggests African governments increase domestic resource mobilisation in order to finance health, education, infrastructure development, industrialization, and agriculture. However, falling tax revenues from an estimated 16.1 percent of GDP in 2010 to 14.2 percent of GDP in 2021, have impeded progress on the continent.
Vera Daves de Sousa, Minister of Finance of the Republic of Angola and Chairperson of the Committee responsible for the initiative, said the SADC meeting discussed ways of enhancing and preserving the integrity of financial systems in SADC Member States, as well as devising strategies for sustainable finance of regional infrastructure projects through development finance interventions.
She said implementing robust financial and investment policies, will achieve sustainable economic development, eradicate poverty, and promote regional integration, cooperation, and coordination within the finance and investment sectors.
She also said the SADC Regional Development Fund (SADC RDF) intends to stimulate investment in regional projects, thereby enhancing regional integration and trade.