By Ngozi Onyeakusi — Capital markets have been described as important in the Socio economic development of any nation as they play critical roles in attracting investments.
Chairman of the board of the Securities and Exchange Commission, SEC, Mr. Olufemi Lijadu stated this during the maiden meeting of the new board with members of staff of the Commission in Abuja, Thursday.
According to him, “Everyone is aware of the very important roles capital markets play. We need to attract investments to develop our country and each one of you play a critical role in that regard.
“We are happy to be here and we are going to enable you do your well so that together we can find solutions to our challenges. We are going to learn, brainstorm and work together to move the capital market forward”.
He said the nation needs investments in order to be able to attain its developmental goals, adding that the capital market plays a huge role in that respect, he therefore urged the staff of the Commission to work with the board to achieve this.
“We need to see how we can move forward to have a more orderly market, a market that is fair and transparent and can attract investments to build Nigeria. We need a market that is attractive to investors, both local and foreign
“We aspire to have a capital market where the rules are enforced and where the public who invests are all protected. We need to re inforce the public trust. I therefore enjoin everyone to help us towards building a capital market that this country deserves” he stated.
He assured that the members of the board would work swiftly but surely to ensure that the Nation has the capital market Nigerians would be proud of.
“There has been incredible progress in our capital markets in the last 20 years, we need to move fast leveraging on technology and we know that we can be the best and we aspire to be the best” he added.
Lijadu thanked the SEC staff for the warm reception accorded the board members saying the board would be guided by the knowledge, capacity and ability of staff to proffer solutions in making the Capital Market one of the best in the world.
In his remarks, Chairman Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria (ASCSN), SEC branch, Comrade Nelson Oleghe who was represented by Comrade Musa Dakup, welcomed the members of the board and pledged the support and commitment of members of staff.