Oxford Business Group Economic Research & Foreign Direct Investment Analysis

• Forward thinking: Targeting availability and affordability to boost inclusion

  by OBG Admin on September 16, 2022

  The availability and affordability of financial services such as payments, savings, credit and insurance are central to financial inclusion. Rural populations, women and low-income groups in Côte d’Ivoire have historically had less access to financial services, which has impeded growth and economic activity. The comparatively high cost of traditional banking products has also been a contributor to low uptake. However, the development and increasingly widespread use of mobile money and digital financial services are playing a significant role in the country’s economic performance and catalysing financial inclusion. Mobile Money The number of Ivorians using mobile money services rose from 7.5m in 2016, or 30% of The post Forward thinking: Targeting availability and affordability to boost inclusion appeared first on Oxford Business Group.

• Outward bound: New opportunities for Ivorian players to expand in UEMOA

  by OBG Admin on September 16, 2022

  Côte d’Ivoire’s importance as a regional centre for the insurance sector is growing, as an increasing number of pan-African players open offices and branches in Abidjan. The country has been a catalyst for the integration of public and private insurance stakeholders in the 14 member countries of the Inter-African Conference on Insurance Markets (Conférence Interafricaine des Marchés d’Assurances, CIMA). Even though large pan-African and international players dominate the insurance sector in Côte d’Ivoire, and in the CIMA region more broadly, Ivorian insurance players have an eye on extending their operations in UEMOA. Regional Leader In terms of total premium for the life and non-life segments, The post Outward bound: New opportunities for Ivorian players to expand in UEMOA appeared first on Oxford Business Group.

• Fiscal reach: Many authorities are attempting to bridge tax revenue gaps by introducing levies on electronic transactions

  by OBG Admin on September 16, 2022

  A number of sub-Saharan African countries have sought to introduce taxes on mobile transactions, in response to the sustained uptake prompted by the Covid-19 pandemic. While such moves have been met with criticism, they represent an opportunity to boost tax revenue significantly. The Covid-19 pandemic and its knock-on effects gave rise to a sharp increase in electronic payments across the African continent – a trend that is set to continue. In parallel to this, public finances in the region have taken a significant hit, as The post Fiscal reach: Many authorities are attempting to bridge tax revenue gaps by introducing levies on electronic transactions appeared first on Oxford Business Group.

• Remunerating progress: Boasting resilience and robust growth, t he Bourse Régionale des Valeurs Mobilières remains a top-performing exchange

  by OBG Admin on September 16, 2022

  The Bourse Régionale des Valeurs Mobilières (BRVM) of UEMOA, which includes Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Guinea Bissau, Mali, Niger, Senegal and Togo, began its activities in 1998 with 35 listed shares. The exchange has since grown considerably – by the end of 2021 it had 46 securities, 35 of which were issued by Ivorian companies; and 123 bond lines, 94 of which were listed on the bond market and 29 unlisted. The BRVM has been a top-performing African stock exchange since 2015, when it The post Remunerating progress: Boasting resilience and robust growth, t he Bourse Régionale des Valeurs Mobilières remains a top-performing exchange appeared first on Oxford Business Group.

• Sowing success: Export commodity prices and new company groupings are adding dynamism to the regional agriculture sector

  by OBG Admin on September 16, 2022

  In 2021 the global economy was marked by an exacerbation of market supply difficulties, in line with the persistent impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. In this context, crude oil prices on international markets jumped by 49.8% in one year in US dollar terms. Over the same period, agricultural producer prices increased by 17.6% compared to 2020. For the main commodities exported by UEMOA countries, prices also rose over the whole of 2021, by 60.6% for coffee, 41.8% for cotton and 31.6% for rubber. New Groupings The post Sowing success: Export commodity prices and new company groupings are adding dynamism to the regional agriculture sector appeared first on Oxford Business Group.

• Favourable figures: New maturities on bond issuances debut as the regional debt market remains a key source of financing for UEMOA states

  by OBG Admin on September 16, 2022

  Economic activity in UEMOA strengthened in 2021, resulting in 6.1% estimated growth in GDP after a sharp slowdown in 2020 due to the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. Economic stimulus measures implemented by member states and the accommodative monetary policy maintained by the Central Bank of West African States (Banque Centrale des Etats de l’Afrique de l’Ouest, BCEAO) were the primary drivers of this growth. The average annual inflation rate was estimated at 3.6%, compared with 2.1% in 2020, due to the rise in the The post Favourable figures: New maturities on bond issuances debut as the regional debt market remains a key source of financing for UEMOA states appeared first on Oxford Business Group.