22 Jan 2025 • Conference • Financial Services

Financial Services: A driver of economic growth and prosperity

The financial services sector is a major contributor to the Mauritian economy and is a driver of growth and prosperity. It is therefore imperative to address issues and challenges in the industry so as to further enhance its growth and competitiveness on the international front.

This was the gist of the statement of the Minister of Financial Services and Economic Planning, Ms Jyoti Jeetun, yesterday in Ebène, during a presentation by the University of Mauritius (UoM) on the Economic impact assessment of the Financial Services sector in Mauritius.

The objective of the study was to estimate the direct, indirect, induced and catalytic effects of the industry on economic output, employment and other economic indicators. A survey of 803 respondents from the financial services sector was conducted as well as in-depth interviews with 40 employers from different firms.

The Minister commended the spirit of collaboration between the academic world and the industry while expressing optimism that this cooperation will continue with Government and the financial services sector in terms of research and analysis.

“It is imperative to come up with a Key Performance Indicator for the sector for the next five years to boost growth and competitiveness”, she said.

Speaking about the issues and challenges in the industry, Minister Jeetun dwelt on operational inefficiency in some Government sectors. It is of utmost importance that the sector becomes service-oriented for the operators while ensuring that internal systems are tuned to the international clientèle, she said.

The lack of skilled resources was another issue she touched upon. She underlined the need for capacity building and finding ways and means to attract the Mauritian diasporas back so that they can participate in the economic development of the country. She also underlined the necessity of enhancing the regulatory framework by making it more facilitative and creating more services and products.

As regards branding and visibility, Minister Jeetun underscored the need to showcase where Mauritius is today so as to attract more clients. “We have to reinvent ourselves to remain competitive and achieve growth”, she concluded.

Presentation and Question-and-Answer Session

Professor and Dean of the Faculty of Law & Management at the UoM, Dr Boopen Seetanah, presented the study on the key ĺeconomic impacts of the financial services sector in Mauritius. He discussed both direct and indirect contributions of the sector to employment and the economy.

Dr Verena Tandrayen-Ragoobur, Professor and Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, UoM, provided an in-depth analysis of the sector’s effects, including direct, induced, and catalytic contributions.

During the Question-and-Answer session, Minister Jeetun thanked the stakeholders from the industry for their pertinent and valuable comments and encouraged the authors to consider the inputs to enrich the findings of the report.

Source : GIS Mauritius