Continental trade ties vital, says Kagame

President Paul Kagame yesterday called for the strengthening of intra-African cooperation and trade. Opening the international conference on private sector development in Africa, at Parliamentary Buildings, the President told the Assembly of over 150 parliamentarians, donors, private sector and civil society representatives that there was no reason why the continent should remain economically dependent as it has abundant resources. He provided three straightforward guidelines on how to overcome the continent’s current dependency dilemma; the continent should rapidly address its infrastructure shortcomings, develop a conducive business culture and continuously ease the manner and cost of doing business.“There is no reason why we should be the world’s suppliers of cheap commodities and yet remain a vast market dependent on the outside world for most of our consumption goods,” Kagame said.“We should rapidly address our infrastructure shortcomings that range from insufficient energy, poor transport networks, to inadequate internet connectivity. As long as these challenges remain, we will not be competitive.”The President noted that it is important to develop a conducive business culture underpinned by high standards of service, and that, in doing all the above, the countries’ central objective should be to continuously ease the manner and cost of doing business.According to the Head of State, as countries on the continent strive to address these concerns, Parliaments remain an indispensable partner. He went on to point out Parliament’s two major support roles to the private sector; develop a modern and appropriate legal and institutional framework that directly meets the interests of business, employees and consumers in a fair, transparent, and timely manner. The other is for legislators to go beyond reacting to realities, and instead be more proactive in projecting future needs and adequately prepare for them. President Kagame praised the Rwandan Parliament for “the excellent work done” in introducing or reforming up to 14 commercial laws in the last few years.The IFC and the World Bank’s latest Doing Business report - the eighth in a series of annual reports – lists Rwanda among the 10 most-improved economies in Sub-Saharan Africa, along Cape Verde, and Zambia.He urged that in Rwanda and in many other African countries, achieving and sustaining economic development aspirations will depend on the extent to which countries can mobilise domestic and external private sector investments. “We know that business creates employment that provides incomes to citizens, which in turn leads to social and economic progress of our nations,” Kagame said.Highlighting the fact that statistics indicate that more than one million Rwandans lifted themselves out of poverty, over the last five years, Kagame noted that “we are conscious” that continued growth in every sector and further reduction in poverty levels will depend on the active participation of the private sector. Collective measures to develop Africa’s private sector are the focus of the three-day session.World and African MPs as well as representatives of development partners, including Dr. Obiageli Ezekwesili, Vice President of the World Bank-Africa Region; Dr. Kamal Elkheshen, Sector Operations Vice President of the ADB; Roger Nord, Deputy Director of the IMF, Africa Department, are discussing how to improve the environment for doing business in Africa.They will also examine how countries can improve their ranking in international evaluations, such as the Doing Business Report, as the Parliamentary Network believes that by creating a knowledge exchange between these groups, Parliamentarians will be better equipped for creating the right legislation for private sector development.Nord noted that the conference is both timely and important because, with aid budgets under pressure, more than ever, the key to accelerating economic development in Africa lies in harnessing private-sector led growth.The IMF chief said the conference is also important because the private sector is also the main source of future job creation, and Africa needs jobs, or, “rich growth.”“I am glad that this conference is taking place in Rwanda, a country that has seen remarkable progress over the past decade. Rwanda was one of the fastest growing economies in the world over the period, with economic growth averaging over eight percent,” Nord said, amidst applause.“At the same time, poverty is also on the decline in the share of the population living below the poverty line from 57 percent in 2005/06 to 45 percent in 2010/11.”He added that Parliamentarians can help promote prosperity by playing a role in their countries’ economic decision making processes; discussing and developing national poverty reduction strategies; and ensuring transparency and accountability.

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Continental trade ties vital, says Kagame