Comesa reflects on Zim business environment

the Comesa Secretariat will be hosting the “Improving Business Environment in Zimbabwe” conference in Harare between May 9 and 11.
The conference is part of Comesa’s broader roadmap for the improvement of the business environment in the region.
The Comesa roadmap for improving business climate is being implemented in a first series of four countries, namely Zimbabwe, Swaziland, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Djibouti.
Some of the keynote speakers expected to grace the event include the Minister of Economic Planning and Investment Promotion Tapiwa Mashakada and Comesa Secretariat director of investment promotion, trade and private sector development Mr Thierry Mutombo Kalonji.
Other speakers include European Union ambassador to Zimbabwe Aldo Dell’Ariccia and Zimbabwe Investment Authority chief executive officer Mr Richard Mbaiwa.
The event is being sponsored by ACP Business Climate Facility and the Comesa Secretariat, and organised by ARCA Consortium (South Africa) and HCL Consultants Ltd.
HCL Consultants representative Mrs Sarah Charles Karytinou said the aim of the conference is to set result in the development of regional indicators and parameters and produce rankings that accurately reflect the situation on the ground in Zimbabwe and other countries in the region.
The setting up of the new parameters will assist in the implementation of the Comesa roadmap for the improvement of the business environment in Zimbabwe and in the region generally.
“This will be done through national consultations with key stakeholders, setting up a country self-assessment tool and monitoring mechanisms, and further assist the countries in the formulation of the roadmap on policy and institutional reforms.
“The Comesa Council decided in 2010 to develop regional indicators and parameters and produce rankings, which should accurately reflect the prevailing situation on doing business in the country while taking into account the World Bank Indicators on Doing Business.
“Specific task groups at the national level have been set up with the objective of preparing action plans on reforms to be carried out in the relevant areas,” she said.
The three-day conference is expected to bring together key stakeholders, including 50 Government senior officials, representatives of national business associations, and investment promotion officers.
Following a decade of economic downturn Zimbabwe was ranked 171 out of 183 economies in the 2012 World Bank Doing Business Report.
This is despite the setting up of the inclusive Government in 2009 and the subsequent adoption of macroeconomic stabilisation policies that have resulted in some early signs of economic recovery, driven by growth in mining output and exports, and agriculture.
Interestingly, despite the recorded economic improvements, the Doing Business Report 2012 ranking is three places lower than in 2011 (168) and 12 places lower than in 2010 (159).
According to the World Bank Doing Business Report 2012, the main weaknesses relate to starting a business, trading across borders, dealing with licences and permits, getting electricity, getting credit, protecting investors and paying taxes. The poor rankings aside, the areas noted by the World Bank Report are clearly critical impediments to private sector development, including the country’s attractiveness for foreign direct investment.
The country has, however, implemented a few important business reforms such as reduction of business registration fees, speeding up the name search process, as well as company and tax registration, lowering the corporate income tax rate to 25 percent from 30 percent, and relaunched the ZIA in December 2010 as a One-Stop Shop.
However, both private and public sector stakeholders agree that it is imperative to further accelerate and sustain the Doing Business reform process in Zimbabwe.