Country markets that shall adopt, implement and utilize the Info.Africa Platform Tools shall enjoy tremendous benefits, including but not limited to the following:
a. Solid Foundation for the Real Estate Sector: A Real Estate Sector that operates transparently shall stimulate the development of a balanced real estate sector that shall serve the interests of all citizens, including promoting availability of affordable rental properties for those who cannot afford to buy homes; affordable housing for all income levels of home buyers; and stimulating investment in the provision of utilities to new homes, all of which generate increased tax revenues for municipalities.
b. Development of Manufacturing Industries: A vibrant real estate sector drives the emergence of industries that produce construction and building materials; furniture and appliances; providers of utilities; mortgage lending sectors; and providers of all types of building and construction services;
c. Secondary Capital Markets: Long term affordable financing for real estate sector development is the best mechanism of stimulating the development of affordable housing, both owner-occupied and rental properties. It can only come from developing domestic capital markets through Municipal Bonds; Asset-Backed Securities and REITS.
d. Investor Confidence: The one barrier to increased inflows of foreign direct investment into African economies that is regularly cited by potential investors in lack of confidence in the African economies due to lack of current and comprehensive information on which they can base their investment decisions.
e. African Banking Sector: The African Banking Sector is constrained in its ability to attract fresh and long term capital, which it could on-lend on attractive terms and conditions to its customers. And the culprit is lack of accurate, uptodate and comprehensive information on which they can base their lending decisions. Inadequate information about the prospective borrower’s business operations, including fair market value of its assets, force banks to hedge their bets in two common ways:
The net effect of these measures that are aimed at safeguarding the bank against possible default of the borrower is to severely curtail the amount of credit flowing into productive sectors of the economy and produce a ‘self-fulfilling prophecy” of economic stagnation.
1.1 The Info.Africa Platform shall serve as the Catalyst, Enabler and Facilitator of African economic integration by removing the “blinders” that keep investment opportunities available in African markets hidden behind regulatory red tape; providing to prospective investors and regulators with up-to-date, comprehensive and accurate market information; and facilitating specialized training for African professionals and institutional capacity development.