The event has the explicit aim of moving beyond talking about investment in Africa to providing a setting for moving specific projects towards bankable deals. It is also from this perspective that I welcome the ABSA Africa Financial Markets Index, as a practical tool that supports market development and, by extension, further improvement in the investment environment.
But, before  sharing some thoughts on the role of financial market indices, let me, very briefly, enunciate the key characteristics of a wellfunctioning financial sector. Distinguished Guests, well-functioning financial markets should foster savings mobilisation and investments in a cost-effective manner, channelling surplus funds to their most productive uses, hence contributing to economic growth.