SEZA should retain mandate- experts
The Special Economic Zones Authority ( SEZA) should retain its mandate of establishing, developing, managing and regulating Special Economic Zones ( SEZs) as that could help accelerate economic reform, diversification as well as boosting exports, which has been mainly driven by diamonds.
This is the message that has come out clearly from Business Botswana advocacy director, Dichaba Molobe and an economist at one of the country’s leading banks who spoke to Botswana Guardian on Wednesday. Their comments come after President Mokgweetsi Masisi’s address to the nation on rationalisation of ministerial and StateOwned Enterprises ( SoEs) some two weeks ago.
According to Molobe, it is important for government to have SEZA retain its mandate, as SEZs are a tried and tested economic acceleration tool that has been used by leading economies like South Africa, Singapore, Malaysia, China and Mauritius to garner unprecedented rates of economic growth. “Its ( SEZA) mandate is important for the growth of the country, especially when it comes to exports. Botswana cannot move forward without exports. Our understanding is that investors who will be housed within SEZs will also be exporting their products or services,” said Molobe, adding the country cannot move into a high- income status without improved and diversified exports base.
When addressing the nation last week, Masisi said the rationalization of government portfolio responsibilities was meant to facilitate enhanced service delivery, accountability and good governance. “As part our journey towards achieving prosperity for all by 2036, government crystallized the re- focusing of its mandate in the formulation of the Economic Recovery and Transformation Plan ( ERTP) and the RESET Agenda. The alignment of the government machinery to the Presidential Agenda is my second priority. I have committed that my roadmap will be embodied in the implementing machinery of the government of the day,” he said.
The rationalization exercise was guided by Section 50 ( 4) read together with Sections 42 ( 10), 42 ( 2), 42 ( 3) and 50 ( 5) of the Constitution, which empower the Office of the President to establish Ministerial offices and the number of Ministers and Assistant Ministers of Government. Part of the changes included elimination of duplication
and overlaps of portfolios through restructuring and merging of some State- Owned Enterprises ( SOEs). “The number of these SOEs has grown over the years and this has had a cumulative impact on the running costs of government as well as the efficiency and effectiveness of the Public Sector as a whole,” said Masisi. The Ministry of Trade and Industry ( MTI), which houses SEZA, is responsible for diversifying the economy by aggressively seeking new niches of trade as a means to raise living standards, create jobs and improve people’s lives. As an endeavor to improve service delivery by the MTI, said Masisi, the investment promotion activities of Botswana Investment Trade Center ( BITC), the Special Economic Zones Authority ( SEZA) and the Botswana Tourism Organization ( BTO) will be incorporated into one entity. “The bottom line is that, SEZA needs to develop SEZs which are attractive to investors, even if the investment promotion part will be done by another entity,” stressed Molobe when responding to this latest development. SEZA is currently developing 8 SEZs. Some of the zones include Sir Seretse Khama International Airport, Pandamatenga and Lobatse. “SEZA has only started developing these SEZs. They should be allowed to continue with their work,” said the economist. The government of Botswana established SEZA in 2015 and mandated it to establish, develop and manage Special Economic Zones ( SEZs). These are designated geographical areas that are governed by special administrative, regulatory and fiscal regimes which are different from those applicable in the rest of the domestic economy. SEZA was also given the responsibility of creating a conducive environment for Domestic and Foreign Direct Investment. The Authority has so far secured funding for implementation of its SEZs throughout the National Development Plan ( NDP 11), which will end in March 2023. The funding covers key infrastructure development projects that will be funded to the tune of over P593 million by the Ministry of Trade and Industry. SEA has also secured over P813 million from the Ministry of Lands and Water Affairs to finance the master planning and land servicing of its SEZs. During the 2021/ 22 financial year, SEZA was allocated over P86 million to construct twelve ( 12) steel grain storage silos at the Pandamatenga SEZ. “The 12 modern steel grain silos will have an overall storage capacity of 60,000 metric. They are being constructed in anticipation of increased agro- production; and are expected to augment the limited capacity of the existing silos. The new silos will increase the overall storage capacity to 90,000MT,” said SEZA Chief Executive Officer ( CEO) Lonely Mogara in a previous interview.