by Phyllis Johnson
The balance of decision-making power between private sector and government, consumers and international agencies was at issue during a recent “private sector” conference in Mozambique, sponsored by the World Bank, Britain and Italy.
This Second Private Sector Conference in Maputo was attended by representatives of all stakeholders, who were vocal in their criticism of each other and clearly had different expectations about what the other should provide and when.
The Minister for Planning and Finance, Tomas Salomao, said there were real conflicts of interest between industrialists who want government to protect their goods against competition from imports, and importers who want to pay less customs duty.
He added that since there were great expectations for government to provide functional infrastructure, any change in import duties must maintain a level of government revenue which made this possible, otherwise the “institutional capacity” of the state would be further reduced.
The Minister of Industry, Commerce and Tourism, Oldemiro Baloi, who hosted and chaired the conference, called on the private sector in Mozambique to establish its own place in the economic environment, and stop expecting government to do everything.
In assessing progress since the First Private Sector Conference a year ago, Baloi acknowledged that government had set too ambitious a timescale, and had overestimated its capacity to implement change.
Among the problems identified were: the costs involved in doing business in Mozambique; function of the investment promotion centre; excessive bureaucracy; outdated legislation; excessive centralization; fiscal costs and accountancy problems; inadequate training and weak infrastructure.
Baloi called on private sector participants to develop their role in a systematic way so as “to collaborate with the government and with society in general in efforts towards development. Only by sharing responsibilities will the word partnership make sense.”
The definition of partnership was also raised by the new British High Commissioner to Mozambique, Bernard Everett, who said the country has a “window of opportunity” for development which is shared by all the stakeholders, whom he identified as: “Mozambicans desperate for capital to develop wealth-creating industries, Mozambicans seeking employment to feed their families, the Government looking for resources to develop social services and to enable Mozambique’s voice to be heard in the world, foreign partners working for the stability and
Development which will help to make this region a prosperous and secure ally, and businessmen seeking investments of benefit to their companies and shareholders.
“None of these groups should set out to impose its will on any of the others. They should all work together to decide how the common interest can best be served.”
But, “windows of opportunity do not remain open indefinitely,” he cautioned. “There is no time to lose in the work of modernisation and reform.”
He cited as an example the Maputo Development Corridor, “which has received tremendous publicity around the world and it is publicity which has spotlighted the huge potential which exists throughout Mozambique in energy, agriculture, mining, fisheries, tourism and other sectors.”
Conference speaker’s encouraged rapid development of Mozambique’s other corridors, to the ports of Beira and Nacala. According to the definition of a corridor, developments could take place from Beira through to Harare, as is the plan for the Maputo corridor, between Maputo port and Witbank, South Africa, Developments may include manufacturing, tourism, mining, etc as well as road and rail routes.
In Tanzania, where an investment forum is planned for November, the organizers are also complaining about the inadequacy of the investment promotion centre, and antiquated laws.
However, government officials have said the Investment Act will be reviewed to give the investment centre more authority and investors more protection. The Investment Promotion Centre was opened in 1990 but lack of resources and initiative have hampered its operations.
Among the complaints now being addressed, according to the Independent Foreign News Service (IFNS), are poor responses to inquiries, lack of qualified staff and shortage of promotional materials, as well as immigration delays in investors’ work permits and protection of property rights.
The new government, elected last year, has made investment promotion a top priority, and identified nine areas, including tourism, manufacturing, agriculture, natural resources and construction.
The Tanzanian President, Benjamin Mkapa, gives priority to creating a viable economy capable of eradicating unemployment and poverty, and has appealed to the private sector, trade unions and public to join hands with the government in trying to achieve this goal.
The two-day forum in Dar es Salaam, to be organized by the government with support from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), will provide opportunities for entrepreneurs to meet potential investors.
The final word goes to the general manager of Maputo’s largest and most exclusive hotel, the Polana, who drew attention to weaknesses in tourist facilities and promotion, as well as discrepancies in costs of air tickets and visas from within and outside the country. In a paper on tourism presented to the private sector conference in Mozambique, he said these anomalies must be addressed so we can “turn these dreams into reality during our lifetime. If we slip back into a coma, perhaps it is best to switch out the lights.” (SARDC)
