Govt to amend PPP act to boost investment

THE government plans to amend the Public Private Partnership (PPP) Act to entice local investors to cooperate with foreign investors.

The Deputy Minister of Finance and Planning, Mr Hamad Chande said in Dar es Salaam at the weekend that the initiative aims at fostering stable, predictable policies needed for enticing investors for creating more jobs and growing the economy.

For example, the PPP Act has a clause requiring local investors wishing to enter into joint ventures with foreign investors to have a capital of more than 10bn/-.

“We have seen this setback and my hope is that this will be amended in the next parliamentary seating,” he said.

Mr Chande said this on Saturday in a press briefing during an annual gala dinner organised by the CEO round table of Tanzania (CEOrt).

He said that Tanzania was looking to climb up in a good environment for doing business index, where involving the private sector in legal and regulatory policies formulation, would give room to having predictable policies and hence, growth of the private sector.

“Government’s doors are open for consultation with the private sector, where all that which are regarded to be legal or regulatory hurdles for business growth can be discussed to attain a common end which will be of positive impact for our development,” he said.

For his part, CEOrt Chairman Mr David Tarimo, hailed the move by the government to discuss with the private sector, saying that now tax policies were more predictable and hence.

He cited tax reforms accorded this year to be one of such hopes that discussion with the government was bringing useful business solutions.

He said that this year, there was growth in trade, where the members of the private sector are eying for export opportunities arising in the regional market of the East African Community (EAC), Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the entire continent of Africa.