LETTERS - Local investment
Local investmentBy Lawrence Mindela
Thursday May 24, 2007 [04:00]
I can't believe that President Mwanawasa and his clique of politicians can barely learn from Zambia's past experience. As much as I appreciate Chinese investment, I also want to point out that Zambia is behaving like man can only live on bread alone. We know that we have no back-up to our our economy; We do not have manufacturing industries to hold any significant economic gain. Then what good does it do Zambia to throw economic development in the hands of foreigners?
We have seen enough of this. Mwanawasa must learn his lesson. Where is Mansa Batteries? Aren't these lessons enough that Zambia needs to empower Zambians so they can compete favourably with the so-called foreign investors?
How can we honestly offer better incentives to people who will leave the country at anytime and yet you deny people who will stick with you even in hard times? I find this really ridiculous.
I am not an expert but I think this government is behaving like commercial sex workers who only live for today because tomorrow will sort itself out.
We need to start planning for the future of our country but I don't see that happening with the current crop of politicians because they can't see beyond the one metre range.
http://www.postzambia.com/post-read_article.php?articleId=26924
Abolition of visas
By Mangala Fwati, Mufulira
Thursday May 24, 2007 [04:00]
Having travelled extensively among some African countries on business trips, I found your article which appeared in the Sunday Post of May 20, 2007 on page 5 entitled “35 International NGOs call for abolition of visas among African nations” interesting to read.
I witnessed how a certain woman of West African origin was troubled as she was travelling through Zambia, Zimbabwe and eventually South Africa. The woman was travelling by road in the company of three children aged between 3 and 6 years.
My heart bled as I witnessed how this woman was interrogated from one border post to the next. Due to these same restrictions, the woman lost one of her child’s cardigans and the weather was quite harsh.
She was made to stand for minutes on end for the officers to let her go.
What compounded the situation was her inability to communicate effectively in English. Africans seem to be suspicious of fellow Africans.
I also look at how our brothers in Zimbabwe waste so much stationary taking irrelevant statistics on people entering Zimbabwe.
They collect such details as how many days you’ll spend in that country, how much you intend to spend, mode of transport, when we all know that such pieces of paper are discarded the moment the passenger leaves the immigration offices.
Cutting down on some of these procedures will not only save colossal amounts of money for our governments but will also ease movement among African states and further consolidate unity in Africa.
Of course, I wouldn’t want to promote lawlessness, but certainly we can do something to ease the agony caused by red tape among our borders.
I strongly support the views held in your article. I hope that that call will be heeded.
http://www.postzambia.com/post-read_article.php?articleId=26923
Leaders and wisdom
By M.Musonda
Thursday May 24, 2007 [04:00]
The development of Zambia in all respects, lies in a leadership which is free from hatred, bitterness and vengeance, and above all leadership with integrity and morality.
Most of the current political leadership fall short of these qualities. Recently The Post has been quoting the Holy Bible for some of the qualities that are neccessary in the leadership that can propel this nation forward.
I agree with that, and the Bible indeed gives some guidelines of how to choose/elect a leader. Such scriptures include: Acts 1:24; Acts 6:3; Exodus 18:21-23; 2 Samuel 7:8 and Psalm 14:34. The standards used in Zambia for choosing leadership are very wrong and worrisome.
In view of the above, as a nation let us look seriously and very closely at Dr Nevers Mumba; he may be the man Zambia needs at the moment and the near future to break this cycle of hatred, bitterness and vengeance in the leadership. I join the many voices that are calling on Dr Mumba to consider re-joining the MMD.
I believe the MMD will welcome such a move. Let God help us, as a nation, to put the right people in leadership for Zambia to move forward in love, forgiveness and prosperity.
http://www.postzambia.com/post-read_article.php?articleId=26931
Chiluba's attack on The Post
By Reuben Musonda Mwango, Oregon USA
Thursday May 24, 2007 [04:00]
I wish to add my voice to the calls to have former president Chiluba return the money that he stole from the Zambian people.
First of all, I wish to condemn the diversion of attention from the issue at hand that Chiluba through his assistant Emmanuel Mwamba is trying to engineer.
I read your May 22, 2007 article entitled and I qoute "Chiluba accuses The Post of hatred' with utter disgust. In actual fact The Post has supported Chiluba on occasions when it was necessary and he knows it.
Only an ungrateful person would now say that The Post has an agenda against him. Honestly, what possible agenda can anyone have against a thief if it is not to make sure he faces justice?
Chiluba, I wish to remind you that if it was not for your social standing, you know what Zambians do to thieves. Not that Zambians are barbarians but because we work so hard for what we have, but to have someone steal from us.
A piece of advice to you: As the Bemba saying goes, 'Amano yafuma mwifwesa, yaya muculu', please just return the funds because believe me, some of us might be too young to actually do anything right now but when the time comes, that money will be sought and returned or the long arm of the law shall visit you because we are tomorrow’s leaders.
So please make your retirement an actual retirement and not a jail sentence.
You really thought you would bribe us with the old, dilapidated houses you were giving away? Be reminded that Zambians are not foolish and one of these days, you might just find yourself at the market place without the police.
http://www.postzambia.com/post-read_article.php?articleId=26933
Electoral malpractices
By Dr Andrew Phiri, UNZA
Thursday May 24, 2007 [04:00]
Your editorial of 22nd May, 2007 titled “Costly by-elections” was elaborate and looked at attitudes of voters and those seeking political office as well as concerns about law enforcement agencies and the Electoral Commission.
The by-elections are indeed as costly much as they are unnecessary. Perhaps your editorial should also have tackled the opportunity cost for the presidential vote.
What is the contribution of the reported electoral malpractices to the election of the President? These malpractices didn’t only affect the Parliament vote, did they?
Noteworthy are the effects such practices have on the constitution of Parliament, various appointments and policy issues.
The costs involved in any election and post-election period are more than meets the eye and when looked at critically, spiral and snowball out of control when you add by-elections.
Every aspect of our livelihood is affected by those persons who are elected dubiously and oversee government operations.
Clement Stone stated that “There is little difference in people but that little difference makes a big difference. The little difference is attitude. The big difference is whether it is positive or negative”.
http://www.postzambia.com/post-read_article.php?articleId=26930
Unrealistic lending rates
By Concerned Student
Thursday May 24, 2007 [04:00]
It's amazing how banks these days are ripping off Zambian citizens in the rates they charge on lending. On average the lending rates are between 23-30 per cent, that is, base rate plus margin! The sad thing is that credit interest on accounts is on average less than 3 per cent per anum.
Imagine you give customers 3 per cent credit interest versus 30 per cent charges on lending. When asked why this is so, they justify it by claiming a lot is taken into account when calculating the lending rates. They even go as far as claiming parameters like tax, inflation and other fringe costs compose the price of lending.
I stand to question this computation in the context of why they do not take the inflation rate effect on the computation of the credit interest rate on savings and other bank accounts. You do not have to be a rocket scientist to calculate the profit percentage they are making. 30 per cent vs. 3 per cent is 27 per cent profit!
No wonder they say banks always win no matter what state of the business cycle the economy is in. This is why the average layman can’t even keep money in a bank because aside the meager credit interest the service charges are high, in fact even higher (when expressed as a percentage) than credit interest itself.
On behalf of the struggling Zambians, I would like to urge management of these commercial banks to be realistic in the rates they lend!
http://www.postzambia.com/post-read_article.php?articleId=26901
Road infrastructure
By Gilbert Wandi
Wednesday May 23, 2007 [04:00]
Recently I was on a trip to Southern Province from the 7th to 11th May and visited Chikankata, Namwala and Siavonga areas.
I am disappointed with the road infrastructure I found in these areas. I can’t understand why after 43 years of independence we still can’t have all-weather roads in the country. When is the government going to finish tarring the Chikankata and the Namwala/Choma roads?
These two roads are important in these areas because farmers and the travelling public depend on them.
I even wonder why we are still have bad roads in rural areas when we have that machinery which came from China. What are those graders, compactors and tippers being used for if we can’t use them to repair bad gravel roads in the rural areas?
It is sad that while we can’t manage to tar new roads, we can’t at the same time even manage to maintain the existing ones.
I am appealing to the Southern Province Permanent Secretary to have a drive on the Batoka/Gwembe road and see for himself how bad the road has become.
There is one spot on this road where there is a big crater which has eaten half of the road and this place has become very dangerous and if nothing is done very soon we will hear that people have died at this same spot and we should not wait for that to happen.
Rains have stopped now and this is the time the government is supposed to be in full swing repairing feeder roads in rural areas to assist farmers transport their harvests to markets without much problems. Why are we not proactive to problems?
Labels: FDI, INFRASTRUCTURE, INTEREST RATES, LEADERSHIP, VISAS
posted by MrK @ 12:15 PM
3 Comments:
LOCAL INVESTMENT
I too do not understand why these politicians are so set against local investment and local entrepreneurs. They keep going on about how Zambia has to be attractive for foreign investors, and yet the very way to make Zambia attractive to foreign investors, is to make it highly attractive to local inevstors and entrepreneurs.
If the MMD cannot understand that, they have no business even being near power, let alone make policy. Without strong local economies, people are not involved in the economic life of the country. Which is bad enough in itself, but it also makes things harder for foreign companies (which is really what we're talking about when we say 'investors').
It should be the central theme of government policy to make economic conditions easier for local companies and entrepreneurs.
ABOLITION OF VISAS
One of the things I remember reading in Lee Kwan Yew's biography, that one of the things he did to get rid of corruption, was to get diminish 'petty power'. The power of small time bureaucrats and officials to hand out licenses, visas, etc. The reason is that they can abuse this power, by expediating their services in exchange for cash.
Certainly, in Singapore, this was one way of fighting small corruption.
UNREALISTIC LENDING RATES
This goes back to the original comment on local investors. How can any legitimate business borrow at 23 to 30% interest rates?
That is the sort of stuff reserved for gamblers and drug dealers. In most countries, this would count as usury.
At the same time, how can there only be a 3% return on money put in the bank?
This is a serious issue. Without money, no business can operate, unless it gets all it's cash from it's own profits. How come the government is interested in bringing down inflation to single digits, and yet does not seem to do anything about the ridiculously high interest rates charged by banks? Is Zambia suffering from too much investment, perhaps?
I suspect that it MIGHT have something to do with the difficulty banks have in establishing the creditworthiness of borrowers. However, these high rates cannot be good for business, if investment is what they are into. Perhaps it is also a reflection of the lack of positive impact that the IMF's programmes have had on the creation of a middle class in Zambia.
Perhaps someone will ask the banks why their rates are so incredibly high? And insist on an honest answer.
I have struggled with this issue of empowerment at times - I think economics does not really offer practical guidance - and this is the mistake. We are told K1 is K1 wherever it comes from. But I am not sure.
Reading a lot of economic historians shows that its very difficult to think of a place which has developed without protecting its home grown firms.
Its just never heard of.
I think you are right. It does matter who invests the K1. Money is money yes, but in terms of the long term flexibility you need your own citizens empowered.
We can a lot from how a small country like Japan developed. The Japanese never really relied on foreign empowerment. They taught themselves and modify everything to local conditions. They focused a lot on local empowerment than inviting foreign investors. In the long term it paid off. But of course some might question, whether Japan could have made even more radical progress with foreign empowerment....I just don't know!!
And what is more, Japan has obstacles to foreign countries setting up and manufacturing in Japan that are incredible.
If you want to set up a business in Japan, you need a Japanese partner, there are all kinds of licenses, etc.
However, if you want to set up a business in Japan to export Japanese manufactured goods, it is very easy.
In other words, they set as their priority that they would manufacture electronics and export them, and they set up their system to do just that. They never had the crazy idea that American companies would start manufacturing radios in Japan and somehow they would benefit from it.
What they did instead, is send Japanese graduates all over the world to learn everything about manufacturing, sales, marketing, etc. and then bring their knowledge back home.
This is how Zambia should approach their manufacturing industry, for instance.
And of course another advantage Japan had was that they were never truly colonized. Their indigenous systems, which evolved over centuries of warfare and accomodation, were the systems they built their economy on. They were able to reject their militaristic tradition, and select their civilian tradition of trade and business to take their country forward. When their militaristic tradition became resurgent, World War II resulted. Since then, they have completely gone the industrial way and barely even have a standing army - which helped hugely in their economic progress.
They did radically adopt modernization (and to this day, Japanese schoolchildren go around dressed like German sailors - which is where their school uniforms are based on).
But the important thing is that this fantasy that there are perfectly free markets, and that we can live in a world without governments, is a utopian notion without precedent.
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