International Development Secretary Penny Mordaunt joined President Kenyatta of Kenya to open trading at the London Stock Exchange today 17 April 2018 where she praised the critical role financial markets play in supporting prosperity and growth across the Commonwealth and welcomed a new partnership between the London Stock Exchange and the Nairobi Securities Exchange.
Ms Mordaunt unveiled a partnership package between the Bank of England and central banks in Sierra Leone, Ghana and South Africa to share expertise, improve regulation and reduce the risk of bank failures. Expert Bank of England staff will help central banks develop sustainable financial systems that power local and regional growth, job creation and investment opportunities.
She also announced UK funding to help developing countries raise investment from global capital markets in their own currencies, promoting investment and job creation.
International Development Secretary Penny Mordaunt said: “Healthy financial markets create opportunities for new investment, trade and jobs, playing a critical role in delivering the global prosperity that benefits us all.
“What’s more, financial markets open the door to a future free from aid dependency. By building partnerships, sharing knowledge and opening up markets across the Commonwealth, we can defeat poverty, boost trade and investment, and deliver on the ambitions of countries that want to stand on their own two feet.”
Dr Ernest Addison, Governor of the Bank of Ghana, said: “The Bank of Ghana is happy to be part of this technical cooperation programme with the Bank of England. We envisage benefitting from the Bank of England’s experience in dealing with financial stability and macroprudential regulation, to assess the full implications of macro issues on the financial system”.
Joanna Place, Chief Operating Officer at the Bank of England said: “The Bank of England is excited to be embarking on this new partnership with the Bank of Ghana, the Bank of Sierra Leone and the South African Reserve Bank. In our increasingly interconnected global financial system, cooperation between central banks is critical to providing the financial stability on which all our citizens rely.
“We look forward to supporting our counterparts in delivering their priorities in building this essential foundation for growth.”
Ms Mordaunt also welcomed the launch of the Commonwealth Digital Finance Champions Group. By sharing expertise and knowledge, the Group will drive innovation to improve financial access for the most vulnerable and underbanked people in societies – for example, exploring ways to reduce the cost of sending remittances. The UK, Kenya, Ghana, Jamaica and Rwanda have all confirmed they will be founding members of the group.
Joe Mucheru, EGH, Cabinet Secretary for the Ministry of Information, Communications and Technology of Kenya said: “Kenya is hailed globally for its early and successful adoption of mobile money. The recent launch of mobile money interoperability in the country will contribute towards bridging the remaining margin to achieve total financial inclusion for all Kenyans.
“I encourage the Commonwealth community to explore the potentials of applying cutting edge technologies such as blockchain for distributed ledgers and artificial intelligence as this can enhance public service delivery and boost economic growth, particularly for developing economies such as Kenya.”
The event marks the second day of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meetings – bringing together business, civic society and government leaders from across the 52 Commonwealth nations in London for a week of events, forums and discussions.
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