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At the OECD's 50th anniversary ministerial meeting on 25 May 2011, South Africa's Minister of Finance, Mr Pravin Gordhan, and OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurría, signed a Memorandum of Understanding announcing the creation of the first Centre for African Public Debt Management.
The opening ceremony, lead by South Africa's Deputy Minister of Finance Nhlanhla Nene and OECD Deputy Secretary-General Mario Amano, took place in Midrand, South Africa, on 30 June 2011.
The centre aims to create stronger securities markets and to help build the necessary market infrastructure in Africa, focusing on:
- sharing best practices in public debt management and the development of bond markets
- enhancing the skill levels of debt managers in Africa
- publishing an African bond market monitor and compiling debt data and statistics.
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Deputy Minister of Finance Nhlanhla Nene and OECD Deputy Secretary-General Mario Amano during the launch of the African Debt Management and Bond Market Development Centre on 30 June 2011.
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In his remarks during the launch ceremony, Deputy Secretary-General Amano noted that the Centre is a joint venture of the South African National Treasury and the OECD. Mr Amano said "Creating this Centre represents a landmark in our co-operation with South Africa. But it also signifies an important step in our relations with Africa more broadly. This Centre is, first of all, an African initiative, taken by debt managers from this continent. It builds directly on the excellent and strong co-operation in the context of the OECD project on African Public Debt Management and Bond Markets since its beginning in 2006. The creation of this Centre raises the profile of the Project and anchors it firmly and visibly where it belongs: in this part of the world".
Deputy Minister Nene said "the strong partnership we have built with the OECD will ensure that the world’s best practices will always be at our disposal... I wish everyone involved in the Centre’s activities fruitful deliberations and may we all work towards a better Africa and so doing strive towards improving the quality of life of our people."
The Centre will be run by experts in the field of debt management and bond market development. The work of the centre will be supported by a steering committee, comprising senior public debt managers from Africa and senior officials from financial institutions with extended African bond market experience.
Launch speeches
For further information, please contact Hans Blommestein, OECD (tel. + 33 1 45 24 79 90).
More about OECD work with Africa on public debt management
Sovereign debt and financial stability
See Also:
5th OECD Forum on African Public Debt Management
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