The inaugural edition of the Juristconsult Investment Summit 2022 kicked off this morning at Andrea Lodges in St Aubin, bringing together leading representatives of the government, industry and legal profession to take stock of the opportunities for Mauritius as a key hub for investments, at a time where the financial services sector is celebrating its 30th anniversary on the island.
The opening ceremony was graced by Dr. the Hon. Renganaden Padayachy, Minister of Finance, Economic Planning and Development; the Governor of the Bank of Mauritius, Harvesh Seegolam; as well as Marc Hein SC, Chairman of Juristconsult Chambers.
In his opening address, Marc Hein highlighted that: “Juristconsult is a business law firm and therefore anything which concerns development and innovation in business and in law interests us. So we try our best to innovate in law and in business, and more than that, in business law. We are affiliated to the DLA Piper group, DLA Piper being a leading law firm orientated towards business law. Today’s session will be geared towards discussing and brainstorming around ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) factors.”
As the Chief Guest at the Summit, Dr. the Hon. Renganaden Padayachy gave the Ministerial Address, focusing his comments on setting out the challenges and opportunities for Mauritius as an investment hub and outlining the positive steps being taken with regard to the OECD and plans to establish an ESG framework in Mauritius by the end of the year.
On the economic prospects for Mauritius going forward, he noted: “We have been hit hard by COVID with a GDP contraction of 15% and now after 2 years (2020 and 2021) we are back on track. We have been through the whole process and, according to the latest estimates, we have achieved GDP growth of 7.2%. The GDP will cross the pre-pandemic figures of 2019. All sectors have registered positive growth and will be at the same level as 2019 or higher. We are in a situation where Mauritius is back on track, we have turned the page on COVID, and are looking at the future. Currently, our ambition, with the war in Ukraine, is to decrease the domestic inflation rate.”
Concerning the OECD, he elaborated, “We have been working with the OECD since 2018, and we are working through the whole process with them. The intention is for everything we are doing to be backed by the OECD. We need to concentrate on good governance, on economic activity, and social development – not only to do business as it was in the past but also conform with international norms. Mauritius is setting the example in this part of the continent and we are going to continue like that – we are going to do business the right way.”
Finally, on the timelines for the ESG framework, he noted, “We are working hard on the ESG framework and we want it to be finished by the end of this year. We are working with high-level firms and international companies to set it up and make it operational by the close of 2022.”
The Summit will continue with panel discussions on topical themes, including why Mauritius is attractive for wealth management; on investment funds and ESG; the protection of investment, looking at litigation and arbitration; the importance of data protection in investments; FinTech and its impact on trade and investment; real estate investment and sustainable financing, and closing with a discussion on the future of the Mauritius IFC.
