30 Jul 2014

Parliament has been informed that the African Monetary Fund (AMF) is among the three financial institutions provided for in Article 19 of the Constitutive Act of the African Union.

Answering a question in parliament, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Mr Phandu Skelemani said these institutions, which are to be defined by protocols are aimed at fostering economic growth, accelerating economic integration and facilitating trade within the continent.

He said the other two institutions are the African Investment Bank (AIB) and the African Central Bank (ACB). Minister Skelemani said Botswana fully subscribes to the overall regional integration and cooperation agenda of the African Union (AU), as well as the progressive development and operationalization of institutions to drive it.

He indicated that it was to this end that Botswana was party to the AU decision that adopted the statutes to establish the AMF. The minister further said it is also important to underline that the integration of African economies through the elimination of trade restrictions, coordination of the monetary policies of member states, promoting cooperation between the monetary authorities as well as enhancing greater monetary integration; which are the key objectives of the AMF, are equally important imperatives for Botswana’s development.

Minister Skelemani said the statues have only just been adopted and are yet to be ratified by at least 15 members and enter into force 30 days after the deposit of the fifteenth instrument of ratification. “I am constrained to indicate the exact amount of Botswana’s shares in the fund or even their monetary value,” said the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation.

He said this will be a subject of further negotiations among the state parties once the protocol has entered into force. He explained that while the recently adopted statute broadly defines the parameters of the AMF in terms of the governance structure, capital subscriptions calculation/formula and state party’s obligations, more modalities are yet to be finalized before Botswana will know exactly how much will pay or own. ENDS