Supporting the Policy Enabling Environment for Development
USAID SPEED

Business Environment

The Trade & Investment Project provided assistance to the Ministry of Industry and Trade on reviewing and making recommendations to simplify business licensing procedures in Mozambique. The team also: assisted with providing stretegies to enable the one-stop-shops to issue licenses; adapte e-government applications to the licensing process; and strengthening the licensing reform process to included Ministries other than MIC.

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Protectionist aviation policies severely constrain the development of tourism as well as businesses, including those related to high-value added agriculture and just-in-time manufacturing. This protectionism, for example, pulls customers from the entire travel and tourism chain—from hotels, resorts, car rentals, computer reservations systems, entertainment, and cultural attractions. Further liberalizing air transport will do more to increase receipts from hotels and other tourist and business activities than the income of the national airline. A more liberalized air transport sector will give Mozambique’s products greater access to international markets, reduce the cost of doing business in and with Mozambique, and improve the business enabling environment in general. It will also attract more tourists, which, in turn, will create more jobs and more exports.

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Global experience has shown that existence of a clear and comprehensive legal-regulatory framework for Public-Private Partnerships (PPP) -– particularly in civil code countries – is essential to achieving sound governance in PPP projects of all kinds. With preparation of the Preliminary Draft Law on Public-Private Partnerships (PPP) and Megaprojects, and its accompanying Preliminary Draft Regulations, the Government of Mozambique has initiated a valuable effort to begin fashioning such a framework for Mozambique, and thus move toward greater effectiveness in PPP investments and operations.

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Are They Necessary?

Numerous surveys and studies have been done in Mozambique to identify barriers to private investment-the negative side of the business environment. Yet hardly any information is available on key factors that actually motivate investors to commit resources to business opportunities in Mozambique-the positive side of the business environment. The purpose of the present study is to examine this neglected side of the equation by reporting on survey results from a stratified random sample of companies that obtained investment approvals in 2005, 2006 and 2007 to qualify for fiscal benefits (benefícios fiscais) and guarantees on the remittance of funds abroad.

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The Project has been supporting public-private sector dialog on economic issues related to trade and improvement of the business environment in Mozambique. We have worked closely with CTA in designing the the conference agenda, commissioning research and studies, assisting in identifying and bringing keynote speakers to speak at the conference as well as providing additional financial and technical support for the annual public-private sector conference.

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The Confederation of Mozambican Business Associations held its 11th Annual Private Sector Conference from October 29 to 30. The central theme of the conference was “Productivity and Competitiveness: the Path to the Global Market”, with sessions on transaction costs, agricultural development, and business opportunities, including tourism.

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From November 8-9, 2007, the Confederation of Mozambican Industries (CTA) convened its tenth Annual Private Sector Conference (CASP) in Maputo. Opened this year by the President of the Republic of Mozambique, Armando Guebuza, the conference was attended by the Prime Minister, key ministers of the Economic Cabinet, and more than 700 people from the private sector, government, academia and donors, and representatives of Mozambique’s nine provinces.

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