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WE MUST GROW, CAN GROW

19/11/2020 06:42:00 By Chris Morgan

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Please don’t lose sight of a very serious issue – the economic growth of this country. If our economy grows it will be because we have more crops harvested, goods produced and services of value provided to the market; in so doing creating jobs, and, together with increased private sector revenue and profits, boosting government tax revenue. That provides money for public services of quality, and a higher standard of living for everyone. Sadly, over the past two decades we have made limited progress in these areas. We’ve had strategy after strategy presented by government, but in economic growth terms and visible national prosperity we have been drifting downwards, with no hard evidence that anything will change. What’s causing this?

The main answer is that we fail to make implementation of strategies and action plans our top priority at all times. Too much chat, too many pieces of paper and too little action; at least, action in the right direction. When tackling the Post-COVID-19 (should really have been Mid-COVID-19) Economic Recovery Plan, we must, at all cost, avoid sliding into the same languid failure.

I think Eswatini is a lovely country with a warm and friendly population; peaceful and cooperative in nature. Like many fellow expatriates, I made this my home for those very good reasons. Let me take that a stage further. The World Bank Ease of Doing Business Index places Eswatini at 121 out of 190 countries, well below most of our competitors. There is no excuse for failing to improve that position over the past years and government needs to go flat-out if it is to be the ‘enabler’ of private sector growth, as proudly presented by the post-COVID plan. But it is my firm conviction that Eswatini has far more to offer the potential investor than is reflected in the index. Last year, when bidding to host the African Union Secretariat, we performed far better than was expected. The independent technical evaluation team that visited Eswatini was clearly impressed with the country and its people, and highly complimentary regarding aspects that you can’t measure - especially what it feels like to be here, with the people and facilities, amid the beauty of the landscape.

Reflect

Confident in this knowledge, we should reflect on some strategies for success that deserve a special mention:

Use of our foreign missions with the staff trained and motivated to promote trade and investment; armed to the teeth with promotional videos; targets set for them, their investment diplomacy activities vigorously monitored. All foreign visits by our top representatives to focus on encouraging potential investors to see Eswatini for themselves; giving them a five-star welcome; bringing existing investors to co-promote at meetings. Making investor-incentive packages focus more on increased employment numbers and VAT generated through turnover; corporate tax rates are declining in importance owing to international inclusion programmes.

Creating 100 per cent confidence among investors that security of tenure is rock-solid; making freehold land available; spending money not on factory shells but on financial incentives for investors to build their own, cementing their commitment to the economy and society. Overhauling the seriously slow civil litigation process; getting the judicial logjam sorted and all the anti-corruption cases through the prosecution process; at present, investors don’t like what they see; nor do we. Fiercely promoting and incentivising value-adding industrial investment in Eswatini; the global confectionery market is US$100 billion – our share virtually nil despite our strong sugar industry; let’s export liqueur chocolates in place of bags of refined sugar.

Standards

Sustaining good human rights standards.

The Post-COVID-19 Economic Recovery Plan enjoys the same prestigious public position as every one of its predecessors. It is an impressive document, despite the somewhat alarming omission of the substantial thermal power project recently announced, and there are many capable people assigned to overseeing implementation. The plan’s ‘timeframe’ – presumably latest implementation date – of February 2022, looks totally unrealistic, and should be tested as soon as possible, with government reporting regularly, both to Parliament and the general public, the latter through the media. Each identified investment should show the original expected timeline and the latest expected date of finalisation and ready-to-go status. There’s E31 billion of investment at stake. My reason for writing this article is largely to record an impassioned plea for that to happen – to create the pressure needed for success. If government had enough faith to present the plan it should have the confidence to commit itself to regular progress reporting.

This is both the time and opportunity for a far more dynamic partnership between government and the private sector; and across the board. COVID-19 will, while it lasts, provide a convenient excuse for failure. But we don’t want excuses; we want economic growth and greater prosperity for everyone.