Struggling printers appeal to government for bail out

Poor skills, obsolete technology and insufficient funding could bring the printing and publishing industry to its knees. According to Gilles Mporanyi, the Rwanda Printers Association boss, the local industry is still relying on very old technology compared to its regional competitors because stakeholders cannot afford the high interest rate loans. Mporanyi said this compromises quality and efficiency, especially as the sector also lacks skilled people to handle it. “The old technology employed by the industry does not provide for quality production demanded by the market,” Mporanyi, who is also the managing director of Printex Limited, said. He said efforts to acquire hi-tech printing equipment and revolutionise the sector are always hampered by high loan rates. “Because printing and publishing is a capital intensive sector, it requires a lot of investment that it sometimes requires acquiring a bank loan. Uunfortunately, interest rates are still high leaving us with no choice but to stick to old technologies which are cheap, but time consuming,” he said.He noted that their would-be clients, including government institutions, are now taking businesses to regional printers, who assure quality because “they use the latest technology and have the right expertise to deliver quality work”. Mporanyi also noted that there is no clear regulatory framework to guide and support the industry. The printers also said tertiary institutions do not equip students with the skills required by the sector. “As a result, we are relying on foreign expatriates, who are expensive for the struggling industry,” Mporanyi noted. Chantal Umuraza, the director general of the chamber of industry, said local industries need to be supported, arguing that they are key to the country’s growth. “Government and other stakeholders should assist local investors, including the printing industry, to access what services they need to grow,” she said. She added that such sectors should be given subsidies and grants to help them build their capacity. However, Robert Muhizi, the manufacturing and development division manager at the Rwanda Development Board, said local investors are supported to grow their businesses. He noted that, according to the procurement law, 10 per cent of all government jobs is reserved for the local service providers, including the printers. Ninety per cent of the tenders are competed for equally by both local and foreign contractors, he added.Muhizi said the government gives technical assistances to those sectors that need it, besides the number of initiatives it has put in place to ensure an enabling environment for investors to operate profitably.He said for the case of manufacturing and printing, eligible investors with a threshold investment worth $250,000 (foreign investors) and $100,000 for local investors are exempted from import duties, value added tax and withholding tax on raw materials.“We also provide them with investment allowance of 40 per cent of the value of assets in the first tax period,” Muhizi explained. Christine Wamaria, the MULTICOM Printing Press assistant managing director, said local printers are not competitive in the regional market because of limited capacity in areas of technology, finance and expertise. “Unless we address these issues and get organised as an industry, we will not benefit much from the East African Community common market. Umaraza noted the sector’s problems could be solved if the government cushions domestic industries from being ‘suffocated’ by foreign firms. She said this coupled with regional collaboration could help local printers gain skills to produce efficiently and become competitive. Currently there are about 14 registered printing companies in the country. To register a printing company one is required to have total turnover of Rwf250m. Installation of a printing press costs between Rwf500m and Rwf1b, according to Mporanyi. Stephen Mugisha, an author and publisher, said the printing industry should be prioritised and given the necessary support to grow. He argued that the industry is vital as it supports the education sector and culture of any given country. “So, if the sector cannot compete regionally, that puts some of the government programmes that aim at sustainability at risk,” Mugisha observed.In a recent article, “What if Rwanda’s indigenous publishing grew…?”, he argued that publishing should be a dedicated organ of any nation or people because it acts as a voice and custodian of knowledge. “It is, therefore, sensitive in terms of national value systems and national pride.” He said that the situation of the publishing industry in Rwanda is alarming. Local publishing and book industry has remained stagnant and in oblivion, no wonder majority of Rwandans can hardly tell the difference between a library and a bookshop or printing and publishing. He noted that books published by every nation become the voice and the heritage of that very nation. Countries have used publishing industry and books, for that matter, to disseminate and inculcate their cultural values and heritage and most importantly to preserve their values and cultural mores for the posterity, Mugisha said. A lot still needs to be done for the indigenous publishing to grow. Mugisha urged the government to adopt more progressive policies that promote and encourage the establishment and development of indigenous publishing to stop dependence on foreign and importation of foreign educational and reading materials. “Publishing and printing industries and the book trade should be accorded priority status and given the necessary facilities if these industries are to blossom and grow. Printing costs are very high in Rwanda compared to other countries in the region,” he said. For example can government consider tax waiver on papers which are primary raw material for book production?