Institutional leaders, corporate executives and market specialists gathered in Cotonou on 17 and 18 September 2026 for the second edition of the regional shareholder forum, where they issued a direct call to overhaul investment habits across the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA). The core problem: development financing gaps and a persistent reliance on external capital.
Organised jointly by UCA SGI and Dimensions GROUP, the event ran under the theme “Shareholding and financial sovereignty: mobilising savings to accelerate economic transformation”. It exposed a stubborn contradiction — despite dynamic growth across the UEMOA zone, regional financial markets are still failing to fully capture domestic savings.
Building a popular shareholding culture
For organisers and regulators, the diagnosis is straightforward: strengthening popular shareholding is a decisive lever. Converting savings that are often dormant or channelled into very short-term placements into productive capital would give SMEs and large local groups the equity they need to expand.
Key priorities identified during the forum
- Access to capital markets: Easing listings for local companies and energising the Regional Stock Exchange (BRVM).
- Inclusion and innovation: Using digital tools to bring investment opportunities closer to the general public and to promote financial education.
- Regulatory framework and public policy: Adjusting tax and legal arrangements to steer savings durably towards financing infrastructure and the private sector.
A strategic sovereignty issue
Representatives of the BCEAO, the UEMOA Commission and the Financial Markets Authority stressed the structural nature of this effort. By making the financing of local economies more autonomous, states and businesses in the sub-region strengthen their resilience to external shocks and volatility in international markets.
As the forum wrapped up in Cotonou, participants agreed on the urgent need to encourage every citizen to become a direct player in regional economic growth through shared investment.
