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MEFMI raises awareness on international sovereign bond issuances

As the COVID-19 pandemic evolves, governments in developing countries continue to face significantly high financing pressures to cope with the crisis. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) estimates that, to strengthen the pandemic response and accelerate income convergence, sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries face additional external funding needs of US$425 billion over the period 2021 to 2025. However, the region can cover only a portion of these needs on its own due to significant decline in traditional domestic revenue caused by the pandemic. Moreover, foreign grants and concessional loans have declined drastically over the past decade, severely affecting governments’ capacity to finance development priorities.
The pandemic provides a valuable opportunity for governments in SSA to explore other market-based financing options. One such financing option is the issuance of sovereign bonds on the international capital market. After a closure in early 2020, international capital markets have reopened for SSA countries, with Côte d’Ivoire, Benin, Kenya and Rwanda successfully placing Eurobonds at favourable yields. At a time of near-zero policy rates in advanced economies, other countries in the MEFMI region could similarly consider new issuances of longer maturities not only to buy-back existing Eurobonds and proactively address upcoming debt burden in line with debt management strategies but also take advantage of the conducive market conditions to replenish international reserves, accelerate financing of strategic projects that support recovery from the economic downturn triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Access to international capital markets is a relatively new phenomenon in the region, and sovereign issuers rely on outsourced international advisors for managing international sovereign bond transactions, as in-country knowledge and expertise is still lacking. As part of efforts to support countries close the knowledge gap, MEFMI conducted a virtual course on International Sovereign Bond Issuance to discuss strategic and operational considerations for accessing international capital markets and best practices in preparing for an issuance. The course was held from 4 – 8 October, 2021 and a total of 56 officials from 12 MEFMI member countries, namely Angola, Botswana, Eswatini, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe, participated in the course.
The course enhanced participants’ understanding of strategic and operational issues in international sovereign bond issuance. With this knowledge, participants are expected to interact effectively with different stakeholders in the international market for better outcomes and manage the costs and risks of their public debt portfolios to safeguard debt sustainability.
The course was facilitated by a team of resource persons comprising sovereign and international debt market practitioners. The sovereign debt practitioners were Mr. Jacob Mkandawire (Bank of Zambia), Mr. Samuel Arkhurst (Ministry of Finance, Ghana), and Ms. Helvi Fillipus (Bank of Namibia). International debt market practitioners were from Rand Merchant Bank (Mr. Harris Hadjitheoris, Ms. Suliyat Adeleke and Mr. Lwandile Nene), White & Case LLP (Ms. Melissa Butler and Ms. Jessica Oliver), Africa Legal Support Facility (Ms. Toyin Ojo), and Trade and Development Bank (Dr. Felister Kivisi). Mr. Tiviniton Makuve of the Secretariat was also part of the resource team.
MEFMI plans to hive-off some topics and offer them as stand-alone courses to widen the scope for content to be pitched to the level that better captures the intricacies of each topic, knitted closely with a practical guide on how processes and strategies could be tailored to country circumstances, including tips specific to each stage of the issuance process.

Source: Mefmi

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MEFMI conducts a User Training Workshop on Revamped PCMS

MEFMI conducted a regional workshop during the period 4 to 8 October 2021, on the Private Capital Flows Monitoring System (PCMS). The PCMS is a web-based application that was developed by MEFMI in 2007 to help member countries record and process foreign private investment data for Balance of Payments (BOP) and International Investment Position (IIP) statistics and to support policy decisions in general. The system is currently used by seven (7) countries namely Botswana, Eswatini, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Rwanda and Tanzania.
Since 2018, MEFMI has been working on revamping the system. This was driven by the need to meet the emerging sophisticated needs of users and the incorporation of technological advancements with the aim of rolling out a more robust system to MEFMI member countries and beyond. With the revamping process of the system nearing completion, MEFMI organised a training workshop with the main objective of imparting knowledge and skills to participants on the new functionalities of the revamped system. In addition, the workshop was also expected to provide a platform for stress testing the system through the practical application of the functionalities by a wider group of users.
During the workshop, the resource team conducted a step-by-step demonstration of the system functionalities, while highlighting changes from the previous version of the system and also making reference to the user needs being addressed. Participants had a hands-on application of the system and provided feedback on their observations. Specifically, the demonstration focused on all the modules of the system which include; Static data, Survey management, Data capture, Reports, and System settings. Participants were also shown how to use the helpdesk functionality and the language-translation tool.
Looking ahead, MEFMI has planned various in-country training workshops that will take place during 2022 for all PCMS user countries to facilitate the smooth migration to the redesigned system for use in their enterprise surveys. MEFMI is also available to conduct demonstration workshops for non-MEFMI member countries that are interested in taking up the system.
The workshop was conducted virtually and was attended by 38 officials that included 15 female and 23 male participants. The resource team that facilitated the workshop included; Mr. Parag Tipnis – Project Consultant from United Business Solutions; and Ms. Vivian Namugambe – MEFMI Programme Manager.

Source: Mefmi

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Government of Zimbabwe officials trained on DMFAS

MEFMI has made substantial progress in building the capacity of both Users and IT administrators of the Debt Management and Financial Analysis System (DMFAS). The system was developed by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD). However, a recurring challenge faced by member countries has been the retention of appropriately trained staff in debt management offices.
Zimbabwe is one of the MEFMI member countries that continues to receive technical assistance for its staff in the Public Debt Management Office (PDMO). In the first half of 2021, the PDMO engaged three (3) new DMFAS Debt Database Administrators to support the business side of the system. The newly recruited staff had no prior formal technical training to enable them to effectively perform all their tasks and operations relating to DMFAS debt database administration.
As part of support to the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development’s effort to close this capacity gap, MEFMI trained the newly recruited staff on the procedures for installing and maintaining the DMFAS debt database. This is a part of MEFMI’s support to member countries’ efforts to build comprehensive public debt databases and enhance transparency and accountability in the management of public debt. The financial support for this activity was provided by the Financial Sector Deepening (FSD) Africa.
The knowledge acquired is expected to enable participants to effectively support the business side of the system, and thus making the DMFAS a secure and stable repository of public debt information. Ultimately, this will ensure the availability of a consolidated and up-to-date government debt database that facilitates the timely retrieval of statistics to inform policy analysis and strategy formulation.

Source: Mefmi

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French soccer club to file complaint against Cambodia’s Prince Norodom Ravichak

The 100 million euro ($115 million) bank guarantee given by Cambodia’s Prince Norodom Ravichak in support of his bid to buy French soccer club Saint-Etienne was a forgery, club president Bernard Caiazzo told RFA on Monday.
“It took some time to figure out, but in the end, all the specialists said this document was a fake document,” Caiazzo said.
A statement released by the club on Monday said that a complaint would be filed against the prince with the public prosecutor in the club’s hometown “for acts of forgery, use of forgery and attempted fraud.”
“It’s completely crazy,” Caiazzo said. “He sent this [fake] document from a big bank, I can’t say which. It was a foreign bank but one of the top three in its country.”
The club’s suspicions were aroused when it emerged that the signature of the bank’s representative on the guarantee belonged to an individual who had not worked for the bank for several years, Caiazzo added.
Representatives of Ravichak did not respond to RFA requests for comment on Monday.
His bid to take over Saint-Etienne had come with big public promises to revitalize it. The club is one of the best-known in France, but it has struggled both on the pitch and financially in recent years.
“My goal today is to take care of Saint-Étienne and all those who work to restore this club to its rightful place in French and European football,” he told Radio France International in September.
Ravichak is a nephew of Cambodia’s King Norodom Sihamoni. His public image is of a businessman and philanthropist.
But Monday’s news was not the first controversy to strike the prince’s failed bid for the club. RFA reported in September on 47-year-old Ravichak’s extensive business ties to French nationals Ahmed and Abdelkader Bessedik. In recent years, the Qatar-based brothers have been linked to allegations that Nasser Al Khelaifi, the president of Paris Saint-Germain soccer club, bribed a senior official in FIFA, soccer’s international governing body.
All involved have denied any wrongdoing. The Swiss court adjudicating the matter found that none were guilty of a criminal offence, but that nonetheless a “corruptive arrangement” had been entered into and that “unfair and unlawful behavior” had been engaged in.
In a September column for Eurosport that cited RFA’s report, French football journalist Philippe Auclair speculated that perhaps the Bessediks – who he described as “part of the immediate entourage of the president of PSG [Paris Saint Germain]” – were involved in Ravichak’s bid for Saint-Étienne.
A photo posted to social media by a French Khmer entrepreneur last month showed Ravichak dining in a restaurant with two former players for Paris Saint-Germain – midfielder Edwin Murati and goalkeeper Jean-Michel Moutier – and Sokan Oum, a Cambodian diplomat who holds the title of counsellor at the Kingdom’s Paris embassy.
Vibol Oum, who posted the photo to LinkedIn, told RFA that the prince’s bid for Saint-Étienne was not discussed at what he described as “just a friendly lunch.” He declined to say who organized the meal.
Caiazzo told RFA on Monday evening that he did not know whether the Bessediks were involved in Ravichak’s bid for the club. Saint-Etienne’s president said he never met the prince as Ravichak conducted all his dealings with the club through a lawyer.
Ravichak’s attempted takeover of the club was the subject of what Caiazzo described as wildly inaccurate reporting in the press.
“They said he had 500 million euros. This is bullshit,” he told RFA.
Saint-Étienne’s current shareholders, who include club president Caiazzo, are now clearly eager to see Ravichak punished for what they allege was his attempt to defraud them.
The club president said Ravichak’s big promises for St. Etienne a couple of months ago had set alarm bells ringing.
“Normally, all the very serious [buyers], they don’t speak. They don’t speak because it’s not in their interest to speak,” Caiazzo said. “When I see people speaking in the media, most of the time it’s because they are not serious and they have not got the money.”

Copyright © 1998-2016, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036Radio Free Europe–Copyright (c) 2015. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave NW, Ste 400, Washington DC 20036.

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PM Congratulates 18th Anniversary of Preah Reach Troap Dance’s Inscription as Intangible Heritage of Humanity

Prime Minister Samdech Akka Moha Sena Padei Techo Hun Sen has extended his congratulations on the 18th anniversary of the proclamation of Preah Reach Troap Dance (Royal Ballet) as Intangible Heritage of Humanity.
“Nov. 7 marks the 18th anniversary of the registration of the ‘Royal Ballet’ which is a priceless heritage of the Kingdom of Cambodia that has been preserved for a long time until now,” wrote Samdech Techo Prime Minister on his official Facebook page this morning.
Preah Reach Troap Dance (Royal Ballet) was proclaimed masterpiece of Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity in 2003. As described by UNESCO, the Royal Ballet of Cambodia, or Khmer Classical Dance, is famous for its graceful hand gestures and its splendid costumes, closely associated with the royal court during more than one millennium, embodies values of refinement and spirituality characteristics of the Khmer culture. The Performances of the Royal Ballet took place within the framework of various rites associated with the royal power and the prestige of the country.
The codified gestures and poses that dancers must master require many years of intensive training. An orchestra performing sacred music accompanies the dancers and a female chorus provides running commentary on the plot and the emotions mimed by the dancers. The characteristic of Khmer choreography is that the dance does not have fixed gestures, but figures in perpetual movement, which gives a single fluidity in Asia. Musicians and chorus-singers accompany the gracious evolutions by the dancers, wearing embroidered wire clothes of gold and splendid jewels. This makes the Royal Ballet of Cambodia too original to merge with others.
Other Cambodian heritages registered so far on the World Heritage List include the Historic Site of Angkor inscribed as a World Heritage Site in 1992, Lakhon Sbek Thom (big shadow puppet) proclaimed masterpiece of Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity in 2005, the 11th-century Preah Vihear Temple listed as a World Heritage Site in 2008, Teanh Prot (tug-of-war), a popular recreational game, named an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2015, Chapei Dang Veng, a Cambodian two-stringed, long-necked guitar, inscribed on the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding in 2016, Sambor Prei Kuk temple complex registered as a World Heritage Site in 2017, and Lkhon Khol Wat Svay Andet recognised as an Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding in 2018.

Source: Agency Kampuchea Press

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