MSE moves to provide support to SMEs to list

The 16-counter Malawi Stock Exchange (MSE) has unveiled plans to roll out an initiative to provide “handholding support” to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to raise long-term capital through listing on the shares market..

As part of the initiative, MSE plans to launch a project called the Mzinga Incubation this month to grow the shares market.

In an interview yesterday, MSE operations manager Kelline Kondowe said the incubation programme is one of the key strategic initiatives the stock exchange has embarked to grow the market, especially on the supply side.

She said: “The stock exchange currently has only 16 listed companies which is on the lower side when compared to other exchanges within the region.

“This comes against the background of significant growth in pension assets which are looking for bankable projects to invest in.”

Kondowe said MSE considers the growth of the market as a priority that could propel the growth of the private sector.

She said the incubation programme targets SMEs because one of the factors hindering their growth is lack of access to capital.

Said Kondowe: “Our national development plan, the Malawi 2063, acknowledges that in Malawi, we have a missing middle in that we have a few large businesses and a lot smaller ones that fail to graduate to become big businesses.

“It is our belief that through this programme, we will create an ecosystem that will foster growth of the private sector by capacitating SMEs.” 

Minority Shareholders Association of Listed Companies secretary general secretary Frank Harawa described the move as positive, saying it will make the market more attractive.

“There could not be a better time than now to list on the market because there is huge demand for shares,” he said.

Market analyst Bond Mtembezeka also applauded the local shares, saying the move gives ordinary people a chance to be part owners of a company.

Through the programme, MSE is targeting to enroll a minimum of five companies a year to go through the 18-month incubation programme and thereafter list on the market to raise capital.

The incubation programme is being financed by the Financial Inclusion and Entrepreneurship Scaling project under Reserve Bank of Malawi.