NBC to stimulate debate on economic transformation

The bi- annual National Business Conference ( NBC), the brainchild of Business Botswana will this year deliberate on how the country plans to attain a High- Income Status and accelerate transformation to a knowledge- based economy. A landmark in the local business calendar, the conference was halted in 2020 due to the Covid- 19 pandemic, but this year, all roads will lead to the second city of Francistown on October 17 where deliberations will be hosted. Director of Policy Advocacy at Business Botswana, Molobe Dichaba told Botswana Guardian that the 16th edition of the conference expects robust discussions between public and private sector that will fuel the country’s ambition to be like countries including Switzerland, Germany, Korea and Singapore among others. He admits though that the country still has a long way to go before attaining such premium status. Business Botswana believes that among things that need to take place for this ideal to materialise is that the country needs to improve structural reforms, for example, deregulation, privatisation, improve productivity and improve education outcomes to become globally competitive among other things. A high- income economy is one that has Gross National Income ( GNI) per capita of US$ 12,056 or more. Currently Botswana is an upper middle- income economy at a GNI per capita of around US$ 6,640. “To be able to achieve a high- income economy status by 2036, Botswana needs to realise an annual GDP growth of six percent”. Economists also concur that Botswana still needs high impact infrastructure projects to underpin economic diversification and faster growth of an average 5.7 per cent to reach High- Income Status in 2036. “This conference should answer questions like, ‘ should our economy continue to depend on minerals, how do we plan to become competitive and efficient and achieve high levels of productivity?” he said, adding that the 2022 NBC will explore practical yet innovative approaches to accelerating Botswana’s economy. A high- Income Status country will ensure that citizens enjoy a high standard of living and improved welfare support among other things. The NBC mandate, according to Business Botswana remains aligned with Botswana development agenda and aspirations and has been revamped to take into account emerging trends such entrepreneurship, e- commerce and the pandemic. Held under the theme, ‘ Road Map to High- Income, Accelerating Transformation,’ it is in line with the aspiration of Botswana in Vision 2036. The theme also recognises that Botswana’s economic growth prospects lie in the business community and not government. “Therefore, the 2022 Conference seeks to focus all participants on a single ‘ roadmap’ that can be developed at national, regional, sector, business, and institutional levels to accelerate transformation,” Business Botswana says. While Botswana has grappled with the issue of diversification, Dichaba believes that strides have been achieved on the way to achieving the diversification goal.

“Smart partnerships between the government and the private sector are critical to the success of any economic diversification efforts,” he says adding that the process of diversification should be facilitated by government. He believes that the government’s role is to create a sound macroeconomic environment, greater and quicker responsiveness to private sector concerns and minimal regulations. Business Botswana also remains steadfast in their role to ensure that the country’s economy is diversified. “We are advocating for infrastructure, technology and industrial development through the HLCC platform”. Technological innovation and information technology have become the main sources of comparative advantage in the globalised economic environment. Technological resources are in a state of continuous evolution and improvement. This change has affected almost every part of production – manufacturing, services and distribution, all the way to marketing. As far as the African Continental Free Trade Area Agreement ( AfCFTA), Dichabe says local businesses are already using modern technology in their business operations for example, e- commerce to take advantage of the population of 1.3 billion in Africa. He believes this will enable them to participate in the continental value chain. Furthermore, the private sector is also offering capacity building programmes on digitalisation. Over the years, the NBC has prompted the establishment of the High Level Consultative Council ( HLCC) which promotes dialogue between the government and the business community on pertinent economic and development issues affecting the country and is chaired by the President of Botswana. Among some of the key landmarks from this forum are the development of citizen empowerment policy and the establishment of the Citizen Entrepreneurial Development Agency ( CEDA). Another key milestone is the formulation of a National Privatisation Policy. Business Botswana also prides itself in the fact that as a direct result of the NBC is the establishment of the One Stop Service Centre now housed in the country’s investment agency, Botswana Investment and Trade Centre ( BITC) to facilitate the processing of investment applications. Debswana has pledged support for the conference at a tune of P500 000. First National Bank Botswana ( FNBB) will also sponsor the conference to a total sum of P500 000.