Zambia Development Agency tackles cost of doing business
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By Derrick Sinjela published on Monday 11th July 2011
ZAMBIA has too many business licenses and regulations which makes the business environment un-conducive and the cost of doing business in Zambia high in terms of financial costs, effort and time.
Zambia needs to establish a Business Regulatory Reform Unit, and the main purpose of the Unit will be to ascertain and vet the quality of all new business licenses to ensure that they meet high quality standards before being legislated and deposited in the e-registry of licenses, recommends ZDA.
According to a statement made available by the Zambia Development Agency (ZDA) the absence of a complete and officially sanctioned inventory of existing business regulations creates a feeling of regulatory policy uncertainty for businesses and investors in Zambia.
It stated that accessing the latest business- related rules and regulation is a challenge. The frequent changes in existing rules and regulations make it challenging for even willing businesses to comply with the law, and that this creates informality, corruption and regulatory hassles.
Last week the Zambia Development Agency launched the e-Registry a centralized online Database of licenses /permits and licensing institutions in Zambia.
Explaining the benefit of e-Registry, e-Registry Consultant Kabwe Mwaya said it will increased access to exhaustive business licensing Information Increased Transparency and also provide a ready reference point for both the business community and the licensing Agent, and also Increased Transparency and also provides a ready reference point for both the business community and the licensing Agent.
Mwaya said the new licensing system will help reduce the cost of doing business resulting from a centralised online access system.
Speaking at the same occasion Principal Consultant Charles Matanda said e-Registry will contribute towards attainment of Zambia’s 2030 vision Middle prosperous income Nation by 2030 and will help create good and healthy business environment facilitates economic growth and reduces poverty.
Matanda said the objectives of Business Licensing Reform is to substantially reduce the number of unnecessary licensing requirements in Zambia , make the licensing regimes simpler, transparent and easy to comply with and ensure licensing is focused on legitimate regulatory purposes. “Focus GRZ, stakeholder attention on business regulation, not revenue generation, as the primary purpose of business licensing,” he added.
“Implementation of these reforms has brought about in a number of outcomes. One such is the Birth of One Stop Shop (OSS),”he said.
He revealed that business License Reform Committee (BLRC) was constituted whose mandate was to identify all business licenses, permits and certifications in Zambia Rapid review all licenses against clearly agreed criteria.
Matanda said the findings of the BLRC reveals that the number of steps required to obtain a license are no less than an average of 6 per license and the high number of contact points and steps provide opportunity for corruption and increases inefficiency in the process which also contributes to the compliance costs for businesses.
He further said the BLRC recommended the establishing of an Electronic Registry to Secure Licensing Reforms, adding that Government considers the possibilities of introducing a mechanism to collect and publish information on licensing regulations through an e-registry.
“The e-registry should be a centralised and publicly accessible electronic database designed to hold all business licenses. The immediate objective of the e-registry is to provide easy access to exhaustive information about business licenses and the formalities businesses must comply with to obtain licenses,” he said.
He added that the e-registry should provide positive legal security by ensuring that only those business licenses published in the e-registry will have legal effect, validity and enforceability, as far as business activities are concerned.
“The BLRC recommends the establishing a Business Regulatory Reform Unit. The main purpose of the Unit will be to ascertain and vet the quality of all new business licenses to ensure that they meet high quality standards before being legislated and deposited in the e-registry of licenses. The Business Regulatory Reform Unit should be centrally located and house the e-registry. ,”he said.
Meanwhile the ZDA charged that the e-registry will improve and supplement the transparency of legal gazettes by adding/including information about the regulations that are in effect (not just the new or marginal revisions).
The agency affirmed that the e-registry will ensure access to regulatory information for all levels of business and civil society. The registry is uploaded to the internet and anyone can access it to download regulatory information.
“The e-Registry is a powerful tool to that can ensure public accountability of regulators, reducing corruption opportunities. Accountability can be achieved through the “positive legal security” mentioned above. If the register prescribes regulatory transaction processes in great detail, it will support the reduction of “excessive discretion” that has often been abused by administrators and inspectors,” assured the ZDA.
Currently business-related rules, laws and regulations are published in government gazettes that are difficult to access for most businesses both at home and abroad. Businesses have to incur costs just to know what rules and regulations are currently enforced.
Chief Chipepo fights early marriages
By Derrick Sinjela published on Monday 11th July 2011
CHIEF Chipepo of the Tonga people of Siavonga in the Southern Province says his chiefdom is grappling with early marriage due to poverty and has since called on Patriotic Front (PF) Government to stiffen as an effective check on the rampant vice.
Chief Chipepo says prioritizing sensitisation programmes in the area is yet another intervention viewed as an effective curb against early marriages in his chiefdom.
Alluding to the hunger situation in the Southern Province, Chief Chipepo bemoaned that poverty was exacerbated as a result of climate change which had negatively affected the rainfall pattern in the area resulting in crops being destroyed.
In addition, Chief Chipepo complained that marauding elephant from Zimbabwe continued trekking and destroying crops meant for the livelihood, a development need quick intervention by the Zambia Wildlife Authority (ZAWA).
“Changes in the climate have resulted in failed crops. We are also faced with animal and human conflict as elephants continue to destroy our fields. There is increased hunger due to the elephants that are destroying the crops as they trek from Zimbabwe into my chiefdom. We have a problem with the Zambia Wildlife Authority who remain reluctant to compensate us,” Chief Chipepo cried foul
Meanwhile, Chief Chipepo has called on the new Patriotic Front (PF) Government and the people of Zambia to avoid being judgmental and advocating vengeance but to prefer foster unity in the nation
This comes in the wake of those calling for Government to probe the 4th Republican President Rupiah Bwezani Banda over allegation of abuse of resources, stating that there was no absolutely no need for President Michael Sata and the PF to publicly embarrass his predecessor.
Chief Chipepo is calling for reconciliation between President Sata and Dr Rupiah Bwezani Banda.
“There is no need for witch hunting. God wants to reconcile His people, and we should have a spirit of settlement. If there is proof of any allegations of impropriety leveled against the former president, the best option is for such funds and resources to be repaid,” Chief Chipepo advised.
BE PROACTIVE WOMEN TOLD
By Derrick Sinjela published on Monday 11th July 2011
A LUSAKA District Agriculture Cooperatives (LDAC) Committee Member Mary Sakala has called on women in the rural to take keen interest in agricultural activities for them to contribute to ensuring household and national food security.
Sakala says time has come for women till the land pointing out that desist spending time on gossip and idle talk would not empower them economically.
Sakala wants the Zambian Government led by President Michael Chilufya Sata to treat women farmers as equal partners in development process as this particular gender had the numbers to economically build national food security capacity.
“My plea to my colleagues is that as women we are a large group which if helped by the Government we can create a stable economy and food security at household and national level. The Government must target us as we are a marginalized group in our society. As women we must rise and work hard as not to be idle talk and gossip will not feed our families. We all need to work tirelessly to survive,” Sakala told this author in Lusaka.
Sakala, a woman farmer reiterated that she equally faced a lot of challenges accessing farming inputs like seeds and fertilizers distributed in collaboration with the Food Reserve Agency (FRA).
“Women in rural areas need support as our male colleagues often overpower us when seeking farming output distributed especially in the rural areas,” observed Sakala.
Sakala urges the need for networking among women so as to scale up access to FISP at district level.
Meanwhile, Zambia Alliance for Women (ZAW) Executive Director of Women Edah Chimya has challenged the Zambian Government to ensure that there is equal access to farming inputs countrywide.
Chimya says her organisation in championing the cause of women in agriculture notes the growing need for women to receive equal share of farming inputs, through the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives Farmers Input Support Program (FISP).
“We want to bring it to a point where there is equal access to a point where input coming through the support program should reach the intended user.
Further, Chimya observed that farming communities in rural areas had difficulties accessing inputs although distances did not hinder male counterparts engaged in subsistence farming.
