yandraduth googoolye : importance of financial markets to growth as barclays launches africa index speech by mr yandraduth googoolye, governor of the bank of mauritius, at the launch of the barclays africa financial markets index in mauritius, port louis, 22 november 2018. * * * members of the board of the bank of mauritius chairman of the mauritius bankers association head of barclays africa trading, mr george asante chief economist and head of research of omfif, ms danae kyriakopoulou chief executive officers of financial institutions ladies and gentlemen good afternoon and welcome to the bank of mauritius we are pleased to welcome absa and omfif at the bank today. the bank and the financial services commission were admitted as members of omfif june last. omfif regroups diverse players from the public and private sector, central banks, sovereign wealth funds, and academia who meet to exchange views and share experience. we look forward as member of omfif in the future. finance has been compared to being the lubricant of the process of economic growth such that the role of financial markets in the economic development of any country cannot be underplayed. according to robert merton, the primary function of any financial system is to facilitate the allocation and deployment of economic resources. the interactions of these functions work to influence saving and investment decisions, which ultimately translate into the efficient allocation of funds in an economy. the bank of mauritius has long recognized the role of financial markets in mauritius and set up a financial markets department as far back as in 2000. the bank has also established a financial markets committee that meets under its chairmanship and comprises heads of treasury from all banks. the financial markets committee acts as a forum for discussions on developments in the domestic markets and also on existing and future market practices and instruments. through this forum, banks and the central bank endeavor to foster the development of money and foreign exchange markets in mauritius. the bank has been contributing to the development of financial markets from various perspectives. with a view to improving market efficiency, all information, pertaining to the financial markets are disseminated on our website in a timely and transparent manner. on 29 march 2018, the bank in collaboration with bloomberg launched an e - bond trading and market surveillance system, which is a new electronic trading system for mauritian government bonds. the implementation of e - bond has brought more efficiency and greater depth to the secondary market in mauritius. it has allowed

but we should let slovenia's example inspire us. with the right approach, we can move forward and become more technologically advanced while ensuring everyone can benefit from the gains. and when everyone benefits, europe benefits too. over three - quarters of citizens in slovenia feel attached to europe, and almost two - thirds identify as both slovenian and european – levels that are well above their respective eu averages. 9 conclusion let me conclude. in today's uncertain world, europe must learn " to stand and withstand ". and it can do so by looking to slovenia as an example of how to overcome challenges that come its way. first, we must work hard to sow the seeds of success. and then, as the folk singer vlado kreslin sings, " vse se da " – " everything is possible ". thank you. 1charney, n. ( 2017 ), slovenology : living and traveling in the world's best country, beletrina, p. 40. 2 as argued in jakac - bizjak, v. ( 2003 ), " national library of slovenia ", in drake, m. a. ( editor ), encyclopedia of library and information science, crc press, p. 2080. 3 see the ecb's web page on " slovenia ". 4 slovenia business development agency, " automotive industry – a trusted partner in the european value chain ". 5 republic of slovenia ( 2024 ), " slovenia establishes itself as an electric vehicle manufacturer with the production of electric renault twingo ", 24 july. 6 european commission ( 2024 ), " slovenia : a snapshot of digital skills ", 30 july. 7 see the oecd's web page on " income inequality ". 8 oecd ( 2024 ), " economic surveys : slovenia 2024 ". 3 / 4 bis - central bankers'speeches 9 european commission ( 2024 ), " standard eurobarometer 101 - spring 2024 ". 4 / 4 bis - central bankers'speeches