NAIROBI, Dec. 17 (Xinhua) -- East African Community (EAC) member states plan to put in place a strategy to support small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to list on capital markets, officials said on Monday.

Chairman of the Consultative Committee of the East African Securities Regulatory Authorities (EASRA) Paul Muthaura told journalists in Nairobi that the stock exchange regulators in the region have been experiencing various challenges in attracting companies to list despite several policy incentives having been introduced.

"The region's regulators have agreed to support the establishment of a Capital Markets Advisory Center (CMAC) to enhance SME access to capital markets," Muthaura said during the launch of the Rapid Mass Visibilities Strategy (RMVS) in Nairobi.

The initiative is aimed at providing business entities with sufficient visibility as a first step towards preparation for future capital raising and listing at the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE).

EASRA draws membership from capital market regulators in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda and Burundi while South Sudan is in the process of joining the body.

Muthaura said that CMAC is expected to focus on assisting SMEs in the region in prelisting, listing and post-listing support services on the capital markets.

He said that EASRA will also engage strategic stakeholders such as private equity, accounting and other associations, development partners, academia, think tanks and civil society organizations to ensure that more firms list on the capital markets. Enditem

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