By Yakubu LAAH InvestAdvocate
Lagos (INVESTADVOCATE)-The Nigeria’s Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) said on Tuesday in its effort at expanding the depth of the Nigerian Capital Market and promoting financial inclusiveness through the Capital Market its organising a High level Regional Roundtable Workshop on Non- interest Capital Market (Islamic Capital Market) with the Theme: “Financing Development through Islamic Capital Market – a Viable Alternative” scheduled for Monday October 19, 2015.
A statement from the Commission affirmed that the workshop is in line with its strategic Ten year Master Plan on Non-Interest Capital Market. “The objective of the workshop is to encourage states to explore the alternative model for financing infrastructure projects through Islamic Capital Market Products such as Sukuk,” SEC said.
SEC last week affirmed its planning to grow non-interest capital market products to be 25 percent of the overall market capitalisation.
“Our goal is to boost non-interest capital market product innovation so that the segment can be at least a quarter (25 percent) of the overall market capitalisation. We intend to build a strong regulatory regime for non-interest products, encourage stakeholders in the non-interest capital market and ensure the emergence of Nigeria as a prominent non-interest capital market hub both at the regional level and globally,” Zakawanu Garuba, executive commissioner Corporate Services representing Mounir Gwarzo DG SEC said.
“To harness this potential, proper planning is imperative. That is why at the SEC we set up an industry-wide Committee of experts last year to produce a 10-year master plan on non-interest capital market product. Their recommendations have been incorporated into the broader capital market master plan which we have begun implementing. There have been many successful examples of market development through implementation of master plans and we are confident that our own master plan objectives will be achieved as well over the next decade,” Garuba added.
According to him, SEC wants to build a strong regulatory regime for non-interest products, encourage stakeholders in the non-interest capital market and ensure the emergence of Nigeria as a prominent non-interest capital market hub both at the regional level and globally.
He added that the Commission was considering modalities for setting up a Sharia Advisory Council as a body of experts to advice on non-interest product applications.
He further affirmed that to boost liquidity of non-interest products SEC is working with a committee to support the FMDQ platform to enable secondary market trading of the products. “We are also engaging the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to obtain liquidity status for non-interest products (especially the sukuk),” he disclosed.
Garuba said all these efforts are hinged on the fact that Nigeria has more than 80 million Muslims compared to Malaysia’s total population of 30 million. In addition, Nigeria has a larger economy than Malaysia’s, being the largest economy in Africa.
The representative of the SEC DG added that to harness this potential, proper planning was imperative which was “why at the SEC we set up an industry-wide Committee of experts last year to produce a 10-year master plan on non-interest capital market product. Their recommendations have been incorporated into the broader capital market master plan which we have begun implementing” he said.
According to him, in spite of the immense opportunity present in non-interest products, Nigeria is faced with the challenge of lack of capacity.
The Commission says guests expected at the workshop include States Commissioners of Finance for Kano and Jigawa States, States Investment Companies, States Chambers of Commerce and Industries, Manufacturers Associations, SMEDAN, BUK Institute of Islamic Finance, Market Operators within the Region, Corporate Organisations and other Stakeholders.
