PSF chief upbeat over parliamentary meet

The Private Sector Federation (PSF) is hopeful that today’s Parliamentary conference on Private Sector Development in Africa, in Kigali, could help build a more vibrant local private sector.

Tuesday, March 13, 2012
PSF Executive Secretary, Hannington Namara.

The Private Sector Federation (PSF) is hopeful that today’s Parliamentary conference on Private Sector Development in Africa, in Kigali, could help build a more vibrant local private sector.In an interview, Hannington Namara, the Chief Executive Officer, PSF, said the meeting reflects a sense of urgency and importance attached to private sector.The two-day meeting was organised by the African Development Bank, International Monetary Fund and the World Bank Group, and is expected to attract about 100 MPs from more than 35 African countries."Parliamentarians pass laws, and I believe with their direct involvement developing the private sector it will help make doing business much easier,” Namara told Business Times.Topics to be discussed include the role of legislators in areas that are considered essential to Africa’s development, transparency and accountability, regional integration and infrastructure development, technology, skill development and capacity building, as well as access to finance."We appreciate the topics to be discussed because they are crosscutting issues, but things like capacity building need a breakdown to have a quicker impact,” he said.The meeting, to be attended by business leaders and representatives of the civil society as well as donors, will take stock of the private sector environment on the continent and recommend actions that should be taken to promote sustainable private sector.