Online Reporter
THE Second Republic has delivered on its promise to review the whole business licensing system, eliminating or amalgamating licences and permits where this made sense and reducing many of the remaining fees or amalgamated fees.
So far, the reviews of 291 of the licences, permits levies and fees have been fully implemented with appropriate statutory instruments so everyone knows where they stand and there is still a batch that will be implemented in the next three months.
The batch process of cleaning up the licensing regimes perhaps hid the scale of the bureaucratic revolution in progress, but when everything is combined and totalled, the scale of the changes is quite remarkable.
Alongside this large set of reviews is a cultural change in the whole process of coping with requirements of new businesses that have been arising, especially the e-businesses. Instead of a decree from the relevant Ministry a process is in place to first see how everything works, then consult those building the businesses and those using them, and only then seeing what minimum regulation might be necessary.
That, along with constant review of what has already been done and an openness to those in business and to their customers, should mean we can continually evolve the basic licensing requirements to ensure we do not make life more complicated. The central thrust is now more of setting health and safety standards and making sure customers are protected rather than just generating new regulations.
As the Government delved deeply into its whole system of licences and permits, following promises made by President Mnangagwa and the relevant issuing ministries that this would be effective, a lot of inherited regulation was discovered, covering matters that no longer existed or business conditions that no longer applied.
Equally importantly those being licensed or given permits or paying levies and fees were consulted instead of just being given a list of what they had to apply for and pay for. This allowed a return to basics, listing what was necessary for customer and public health and safety and then working out with the business communities the easiest way of ensuring this.
It was the same with investment, another desirable aspect in the general growth of business. Early changes included amalgamating a number of agencies that had somehow arisen and proliferated into a single agency and then looking at what were the essentials, generally adherence to planning, environmental, health, safety and labour law and making sure that due taxes were paid.
That in turn meant that the regulations and law governing these areas needed to be clear, simple and effective, with dross removed and unlikely and unnecessary conditions removed. The final result this year was a revised and simplified set of investment regulations, making it much easier for a prospective investor to see exactly what was expected.
A lot of the required fees in investment and business could be reduced or eliminated with the clean-up of the framework, and often it was found that a single inspection or check could cover the amalgamated and simplified regulations rather than the platoon of inspectors needed in the past, each looking into a different corner.
Supermarkets were often held up as a supreme example of the choking hold of the old systems, being considered in effect as a collection of separate smaller specialised businesses with separate licenses needed for everything, including separate licenses for fresh meat and fish. Obviously their premises needed to be safe and what they sold in all their produce, whether non-perishables, perishables, fresh food and takeaways, would not harm their customers. But there were ways of doing this without papering a wall with licences.
The same Cabinet meeting looking this week at the progress already made, with the back of the reforms now implemented, also gave a good example of how the Government proposes to deal with completely new types of business.
A handful of e-hailing transport platforms has arisen and found to be very convenient for both the users and the providers, with providers prepared to pass on benefits of their greater efficiency in lower fares. The Government is not leaping in to regulate, and will not do so for five months while the businesses settle down.
Then there will be consultation with all stakeholders on a very simple list of requirements, basically passenger and driver safety and, this being a requirement as businesses are formalised, registration with Zimra. Since almost all the drivers have very modest profits the taxes will be exceedingly modest, and in some cases the net income will fall into the zero bracket. But Zimra wants to know everyone in every business, formal and informal, so when they grow, Zimra takes its share. This is not unreasonable.
The same approach should be used as other sectors formalise, figuring out the minimum regulatory requirements so the happy combination or innovation and hard work will not be penalised. Considering the major changes in the older formal sector this will be done and will not be difficult.
The pro-business promises of President Mnangagwa and the Second Republic apply to everyone, whether they are an economic giant or the micro-business.
