PSD findings near conclusion
By By Chiwoyu Sinyangwe
Saturday August 09, 2008 [04:00]
THE Business Licensing Reform programme committee of (PSD) will conclude its findings by November this year in readiness for submission in next year’s national budget, chairperson Eva Jhala said on Thursday. And Jhala observed that most local authorities in the country are currently collecting revenue that is far below the economic activities in their respective areas. Addressing a Lusaka Press Club-organised media breakfast at Hotel Intercontinental yesterday, Jhala also reiterated that the country still had a number of “nuisance” licences that were working against attracting growth in business activities.
“As the Business Licensing Reform programme of Private Sector Development (PSD), we are looking at concluding our part by November this year,” Jhala said. “We are hoping that some of our recommendations would be taken through in next year’s budget.
No one of us wants to work in an over-regulated environment and currently Zambia is over-regulated... we should start talking about deregulating the regulators because if we cut down on the bureaucracy of doing business, then we will be reducing on the opportunities for corruption.”
And Jhala said there was need to streamline the decentralise programme in the country to strengthen the linkages between central and local government.
She also said there was need to reduce the participation of the local councils in licencing of business and that council should only do it on behalf of the Patents and Companies Registration Office (PACRO).
“There is need to reconcile the money councils are collecting and the business activities happening in their districts,” said Jhala. “We need to streamline their operations because at the moment most of the money being collected on behalf of the councils is being lost through corruption.”
If there were mandatory business districts or market districts in every town where anyone with a national license could set up business, that would eliminate local licensing fees, corruption and would solve the eternal issue of marketeers being evicted. If those districts were mandated to be near the center of town (i.e., in good and easy to reach location), that would increase commerce and job opportunities.
ReplyDelete