|
Africa welcomes win-win development partnership
2008-01-14 08:53:11
By MICHAEL HAONGA
The year 2008 starts with a number of challenges before it, one of which is the redressing of an apparent yawning gap between the Developed North and the Developing South.
The AWBC was in its fourth edition, having been previously held in Dakar, Senegal -2004; Accra, Ghana -2005, Bamako, Mali -2006 and Tanzania 2007.
Setting the ball rolling, at the very outset, were appeals raised by the voice from Africa as partly reflected in President Jakaya Kikwete`s remarks when opening the congress.
He told the 500 plus participants drawn from within the African Continent and outside that there was need for cementing a win-win situation between local private sectors in the Continent and foreign private sectors.
He said this was possible through sharing experiences to avoid perpetuation of yawning differences between the two sides resulting in hostility and resentment by the former.
President Kikwete cited some of the bottlenecks as including local private sectors in the continent facing lack of starting capital and skills specifying further that in Tanzania for instance, it was not a matter of being xenophobic or discriminatory to say that building the private sector faced a number of bottlenecks one of which was how to ensure that there were indigenous private sectors alongside their foreign counterparts.
``I find it necessary because if the private sector excludes the local people, there is a risk of resentment and a possible unpredictable back-clash in future`` said President Kikwete.
He said the launching of AWBC was an important initiative as it created a platform to bring together public and private sectors decision makers adding ``We are happy that the AWBC is increasingly becoming effective in fulfilling its role to mobilize international investment and increase capital flow to Africa``
President Yoweri Museven on the other hand pointed to a number of challenges facing African countries such as brain-drain whereby millions of talented and educated people serve in developed countries at the expense of their countries of origin.
Also Dr.Bamanga Tukur, Co-President of the African Business Roundtable & Chairman, NEPAD Business Group called for African Continental approach with a view to harnessing what was within reach for greater achievements and unity.
``I look forward to the day when Africa just like the United States of America, China, Brazil and the United Kingdom can present one team to the Olympics, when Africa, just like Europe can have one currency, when a train line runs from Lagos to Dar es Salaam and movement of goods and services is unrestricted, but facilitated and driven by purely economic considerations``
It was revealed that already the AWBC had made eye-catching and heartening achievements in its earlier three sessions in Senegal, Ghana and Mali.
For instance the Dakar, Senegal year 2004 meeting culminated in AFREXIM Bank signing of an over 10million USD contract with local Senegalese for processing and marketing crude oil, whereas the Accra, Ghana 2005 came up with the institution of a task force involving Business and Public Sector to harness private sector engagement and implementation of projects aimed at realizing Millennium Development Goals.
The Bamako, Mali 2006 AWBC was typified by business deals worth over 207billion CFA that were transacted.
So the AWBC sessions like the just ended one are typified by concrete actions aimed at effecting socio-economic and business growth stimulation engagements.
Also speaking in the same vein, the Commissioner for Trade and Industry African Union Commission, Elizabeth Tankeu said ``The African World Business Congress 2007 and Tanzanian Investment Forum is the most important event for economic policy and goal setting of this year in Africa`` adding that ``Indeed, for African Union Commission , the most critical issue to address in Africa is to strengthen the productive capacities of many African economies in order to increase intra-African trade and African share in international market.``
Florie Liser, Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for Africa, for instance, underscored a number of issues including what the U.S. Government is doing in partnership with African governments and the private sector, to bolster African growth and development through increased trade and investment.
Some remarks were also made by the Director General of the Tanzania Investment Centre (TIC), Emmanuel Ole Naiko, who said that it had availed participants exposure to a vast knowledge base given in the form of presented topics such as matters pertaining to ``Empowering African youth Entrepreneurs, the importance of infrastructure for business development and challenges in the African continent\'s productive capacities.``
He cited external challenges as including the Doha development agenda on matters pertaining to phasing out by all countries tariff peaks, all large trading nations to extend schemes that provide markets access to LDCs , accelerate removal of quotas in textiles and clothing and the need to intensify the building up of capacities of LDCs to trade with each other.
AWBC achievements during its three earlier sessions are as follows:The Dakar meeting in 2004 culminated in AFREXIM Bank signing of a contract worth over 10million USD with local Senegalese for processing and marketing crude oil, whereas the Ghana meeting in 2005 came up with the institution of a task force involving business and public sectors to harness private sector engagement and implementation of projects aimed at realizing Millennium Development Goals.
The AWBC Mali meeting that was held in2006 resulted into business deals worth over 207billion CFA.
Statistics for the Arusha meeting held last year are yet to be published apart from the already known ones which include the sharing of experiences by the participants.
Tanzania also took the opportunity to show to the world its investment potentials which can be exploited by the private sector.
|
