Scherzando Karasu Freelance Writer

The consensus among investors is that Covid-19 will overwhelm frontier emerging markets, causing immense economic fallout from a collapse in both domestic and external demand. However I, without meaning to sound too Pollyannaish I think another scenario is more likely: that such markets will outperform. MSCI’s Frontier Emerging Markets index spans large companies across 34 nations — from Argentina, Bahrain and Bangladesh to Togo, Tunisia and Vietnam. Typically, such markets suffer from domestic economic weakness rather than external factors. Clearly, a number of these countries will have local frailties exposed by the unprecedented shock to external financing from tourism and remittances. Sri Lanka , for example, will probably see a sharp drop in tourism, delivering a nasty economic shock for an economy already struggling. It is also true that some countries in this category, notably Nigeria and Egypt, will be hardest hit by external factors such as falling exports due to lower global

“The future belongs to those organisations that can integrate strategic management, risk management, enterprise performance management, and integrated reporting, Get them all right and you own the future. No wonder that integrating these disciplines is becoming the essence of true strategic risk management.” Andre Bezuidenhout, Head: Risk Management and Compliance Department, SA Reserve Bank (SARB) Managing risk has always been a touchstone of the most successful companies. But in today’s risk-filled business environment, it can be hard for executives to have confidence that their plans and strategies will play out as expected. A big reason for this is that strategic risks – those that either affect or are created by business strategy decisions - can strike more quickly than ever before, hastened by rapid-fire business trends and technological innovations such as social media, mobile and big data. “Risks are increasing both due to the evolution of the business landscape

  “Mauritius offers investors the advantages of an offshore financial center in the Indian Ocean, with a substantial network of treaties and double-taxation avoidance agreements, making it the gateway for routing funds into Africa an India” – UNCTAD World Investment Report. Mauritius was once celebrated as the “star and key of the Indian Ocean” for its strategic position on the maritime spice route. Several hundred years later, the phrase – now inscribed in Latin on the country’s coat of arms, along with palm trees and the once indigenous dodo – still resonates for policymakers. Who see Mauritius as a hub for global trade and investment, built on more than two decades of expertise in cross-border finance. Located between Asia and Africa, Mauritius has evolved into an “International financial center of excellence and repute” says Pravindh Jugnauth, the finance minister. The most striking feature of Mauritius’s financial industry is its outsize offshore sector, which

“There is no miracle. It is due simply to hard work, discipline, and will.”- Sir Anerood Jugnauth - former President of Mauritius. In spite of its small economic size, a  low endowment of natural resources, and remoteness from world markets, Mauritius has transformed itself from a poor sugar economy into one of the most successful and vibrant economies in Africa. With the Mauritian financial services sector in particular now a major pillar of the economy. Which according to recent statistics now makes up 12% of annual GDP with a growth rate of 5.3% according to the newly formed Financial Services Promotion Agency (FSPA) with the potential to continue performing financial miracles at least for the small island nation. Mauritius’ financial sector is now sufficiently well developed, that the country has begun to position itself as a platform for investment linking East Africa with India and China. With strong institutions, a politically stable and thriving business envir