| 1. Background and rationale Efficient financial markets are pivotal for economic growth, private sector development, and financial resilience. Within the Southern African Development Community (SADC), comprising 15 member states, there exists a diverse landscape of financial market development. While countries such as South Africa, Mauritius, and Botswana have relatively advanced and liquid markets, others continue to face significant challenges, including limited market depth, restricted access to foreign exchange, evolving regulatory frameworks, and a nascent local institutional investor base (IMF, 2024). The Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), through its Finance and Domestic Resource Mobilization Section (FDRMS) of the Macroeconomics and Governance Division, is spearheading the development of the SADC-FMI. This initiative is fully aligned with the priorities of the SADC Regional Indicative Strategic Development Plan (RISDP) 2020–2030, which highlights the development of efficient, resilient, and integrated financial systems as fundamental to advancing sustainable economic growth, industrialization, and intra-regional investment (SADC, 2020). The SADC-FMI will thus become a strategic tool for governments, regulators, investors, and development partners to strengthen financial markets and promote regional economic integration in line with Agenda 2063 and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. 2. Purpose The purpose of the assignment is to develop and launch the inaugural SADC Financial Markets Index (SADC-FMI), specifically designed to assess and track the progress of financial market development across the 15 SADC member states. The Index will facilitate annual benchmarking of country performance across key financial market dimensions, provide actionable insights for policy reforms, and strengthen regional financial market integration. The SADC-FMI will be based on a tailored methodology reflecting the unique economic structures, regulatory environments, and market priorities of SADC countries, and will serve as a strategic tool to enhance financial resilience, investment attractiveness, and sustainable growth in the region. Please note that the ECA is precluded from entering into contract with a firm that is not registered with UNGM. Those interested in responding to this EOI but not currently registered as vendors with UNGM, are encouraged to register before submission of the EOI in the United Nations Global Market Place (UNGM). Further details may be obtained by visiting https://www.ungm.org/Vendor/Registration. In order to be eligible for UNGM registration, please make sure to declare in writing the prerequisite for eligibility criteria itemized from A-F as included in EOI instructions attached. |
