The Chairman, Securities and Exchange Commission, Mr Olufemi Lijadu, has described the capital market as important in the socio-economic development of any nation as it plays a critical role in attracting investments.

Lijadu, while speaking at the maiden meeting of the new board with members of staff of the commission in Abuja on Thursday, said the capital market played important roles in economic development.

He said, “We need to attract investments to develop our country and each one of you plays a critical role in that regard. We are happy to be here and we are going to assist you to do your work well, so that, together, we can find solutions to our challenges.

“We are going to learn, brainstorm and work together to move the capital market forward.”

Lijadu said the nation needed investments in order to be able to attain its developmental goals, adding that the capital market played a huge role in that respect.

He, therefore, urged the members of staff of the commission to work with the board to achieve this.

“We need to see how we can move forward to have a more orderly market, a market that is fair and transparent and can attract investments to build Nigeria. We need a market that is attractive to investors, both local and foreign.

“We aspire to have a capital market where the rules are enforced and where investors are all protected. We need to reinforce the public trust. I, therefore, enjoin everyone to help us towards building a capital market that this country deserves.”

He assured the public that members of the board would work swiftly to ensure that the nation got the capital market its citizens would be proud of.

According to Lijadu, there has been an incredible progress in the capital market in the last 20 years, and there is a need to move fast in leveraging technology.