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Private sector bottlenecks highlighted
2005-09-25 07:38:40
By Lusekelo Philemon
The private sector in Tanzania will be effective and turn poverty into history only if the existing legal, regulatory and administrative setbacks have been cleared out.
The Swedish International Development Agency (SIDA) representative, Ewa Hagwall, gave the challenge in Dar es Salaam yesterday at the closing ceremony of a Regulatory Best Practice (RBP) Training session.
’A conducive environment for private sector is an important tool that will liberate the country from poverty,’ Hagwall said.
She added; ’The small and medium enterprises in the country still face a number of challenges, including costly legal, regulatory and administrative environment.’
Hagwall said studies show that Tanzania is one of the most complicated and costly places in the world to start business in.
She remarked: ’Removing such constraints in the legal and regulatory framework is therefore of utmost importance.’
According to Hagwall, it takes about 35 days to fulfill all legal requirements for starting a new business in Tanzania.
For example she said the cost of starting business is 187 per cent of the average (290$) per capita income, as opposed to 11 per cent in Botswana, 53 in Kenya and 131 in Uganda.
She further said that the high cost of complying with regulations may encourage enterprises to remain in the informal economy for many years.
’All new polices as well as legal and regulatory framework should be developed in conformity with international best practices,’ she added.
On his part, the Deputy Permanent Secretary in the President’s Office, Planning and Privatization, Omari Bendera, said that the government would continue to acknowledge the private sector contribution to economic growth.
’Step by step the government is developing and reviewing legislations and regulations so as to give more avenues for the private sector to play its role in the country,’ Bendera said.
The Business Environment Strengthening Programme for Tanzania (BEST) prepared the training programme, which was aimed at imparting new skills of RBP and Regulatory Impact Assessment (RIA).
Forty five participants from various ministerial bodies and private sector attended the course, which was aimed at facilitating the formulation of business friendly laws and regulations.
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