MOSES MATHEW, MWANZA: Complicated formalities and lack of public education on investment in Tanzania are major impediments that trivialize investment promotion and economic development.
Recently the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) in collaboration with the Tanzania Investment Center (TIC) conducted a workshop in Mwanza on an investors survey where participants deprecated existing red tape.
Tobias Abwaro, the finance manager at the Mwanza Urban Water and Sewerage Authority (MWAUWASA) said there are complicated procedures that investors are complaining about TIC, TRA and BRELA as well.
“For investors there is no way but to go to all these offices,” he said. “For example if an investor starts registering a business he is told to go to register the business with BRELA then TIC to acquire the certificate of investment, and then TRA for tax issues,” he said.
The dialogue participant affirmed that in these circumstances the business environment is not conducive and on other hand, people believe that it is the government and its various agencies that failed to produce evidence of a proper investment environment in Tanzania.
Two major problems that investors deemed to be the problem, one was public education and awareness and secondly practicability of the policies.
For the problem of public education and awareness, small investors do not trust medium investors due to the notion that the medium would like to manipulate small ones so as to pinch their money.
Due to public education problems some investors would not furnish relevant and accurate information on investment promotion and economic development, he further noted.
As to the viability of these policies, Abwaro said that government is talking of investment incentives and a business friendly environment, but in reality most investors complain on excessive formalities.
He said some investors do not follow appropriate procedures because one can find an opportunity to invest in a piece of land, but fail to approach TIC and land authorities to obtain allocation, and instead they enter into a contract of acquisition of such land.
“Finally they find themselves in trouble after they have been informed that the land is open space or occupied by someone else,” he affirmed.
All this was due to lack of investment education and awareness among the business community in our country, in which case public education should involve all stakeholders, he said.
Francis Stephen, a participant, said that there are many opportunities for investment in Tanzania but the problem is that small investors do not believe in teaming up with medium scale investors.
Another problem was government implementers “who are not seriously accountable in their roles and responsibilities.
“They are not serious as they don’t like to follow procedures that have been put in place to help business community members, local and foreign,” he emphasized.
Foreign investors have been complaining about the bureaucracy conducted by government officials that makes investors abandon hope about investing in our country, he further stated.
In his opening remarks, the UNIDO program officer, Andrea Antonelli said that the objective of the regional workshop was to provide a platform for investors in the western zone to interact and share views on investment challenges and opportunities.
“This is with a view to orient the public and partner organizations on relevant issues and where special policy direction and support may be required,” he elaborated.
The workshop also provided an opportunity to receive valuable feedback and information on the ongoing UNIDO-TIC investors survey.
Recently UNIDO in Tanzania launched an investors survey as part of UNIDO regional program on investment promotion aiming at stimulating an increase in foreign investment flows into African productive sectors.
This is expected to be achieved through better monitoring of investments, more effectiveness and improved governance in large measure, he said.\\
There was also need for more informed decision making by the private sector on the basis of experimental evidence and leveraging operations of large transnational corporations and state owned enterprises in Africa, he pointed out.
“This is in terms of maximizing economic impact by developing the capacity of supplier bases to successfully compete for participation,” he added.
Ends