SA named best country for debt issuance in SSA

Johannesburg - Emerging Markets Newspaper, an affiliate of the IMF/World Bank Annual Meetings, named South Africa the Best country for Debt management/Sovereign Bond Issuance in Sub-Saharan Africa.

This comes after the World Bank also recently acknowledged SA's excellence in debt dynamics/composition.

Speaking after receiving the award in Washington on Saturday night, Anthony Julies, Deputy Director General – Assets and Liability Management at National Treasury, said the endorsement of South Africa by Emerging Markets Newspaper is a testament to the success the country continues to enjoy in global capital markets.

A deep capital market system, credible judiciary and strong banking system in South Africa continue to be the key attractions which give investors much needed confidence, said Julies.

He said this is partly the results of the regular engagements that investors have with senior policy-makers which ensure that there is constant communication on key policy issues which are pertinent to investors.

"The country is not only recognised for the 'quality' of the deal (price and duration) but also the National Treasury professionalism in debt management operations (operational, and sustainable composition of the sovereign debt portfolio), a continuance of its debt management commitment given challenging political and economic environment globally and domestically," Treasury said in a statement on Sunday.

It said debt sustainability remains one of the key principles of government’s approach to fiscal management.

"Events of this nature keep SA in the limelight given the ongoing funding programme of government domestic and international markets," said Julies.

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