DODOMA: FORMER President, Dr Jakaya Kikwete has insisted that a friendly environment for business and investment was crucial for the country’s economic growth.
“You don’t need an economic degree to know that no economy grows without investment,” Dr Kikwete said during the 4th Business and Economic Development Conference organised by the College of Business Education (CBE) held in Dodoma, on Wednesday.
He said investment requires a friendly business environment because it is a ‘very shy commodity to an unfriendly environment.’
“If you create unfriendly business environment, new investors will be afraid to come but even the existing ones will think of leaving and in a situation where they don’t leave, they won’t expand their business” he pointed out.
Similarly, Dr Kikwete commended the organisers of the conference for choosing the theme “Business and investment environment for economic development” because it supports the government’s efforts to improve the environment for businessmen and investors in the country.
Elaborating, the former Head of State noted that jobs are created by a growing economy as an opposed to one that does not grow, until the elderly retire.
“As an institution of higher education, you have made efforts to support the government’s efforts to promote the economy… I believe it is a good example that should be emulated by other institutions of higher learning in the country,” he said.
He also advised the CBE management to expand the conference by joining with other higher learning institutions, so that they can exchange ideas and promote institution cooperation.
Moreover, he said that if the topic(s) of the conference are properly discussed by stakeholders and the government works on the recommendations, it will significantly help to shape the economic development of the country.
He urged participants to effectively apply knowledge gained from the conference for the benefit of the country and the citizens as a whole.
“It is encouraging that the government has continued to receive the opinions from various stakeholders and work on them… You are all witnesses to the efforts being made by the government to improve the business and investment environment in the country,” Dr Kikwete said.
He also added that the increase in number of investors in the country is a sign of the friendly investment environment set by the government.
On the other hand, Dr Kikwete said that through academic conferences, there are many benefits that can be achieved including new perspective and methods to solve the challenges facing the society.
“A conference like this provides an opportunity for cooperation in research activities, to find answers to the challenges facing the country and the world as whole and also help to develop the skills, education, awareness and knowledge of experts in the country,” he noted.
For her side, Minister for Industry and Trade, Dr Ashatu Kijaji said that the contribution of the business and investment sector to the national income will increase if the various opportunities available in the country are used properly.
“The contribution of the business sector to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) will increase from the current 9 per cent to 30 per cent because business is life, business is the economy,” she said
She said that the research conducted by CBE are used in the country and abroad with the aims of helping the society to get rid of various challenges and to support the government in stimulating economic growth for the development of the people.
Speaking earlier, CBE Rector, Prof Edda Lwoga said that the college has the plan to improve the delivery of training through modern means of communication by establishing online postgraduate programmes including Post Graduate Diploma in Business Administration and Masters in Business Administration.
She said that more than 100 research studies will be presented at the conference and discussions on action to take against the challenges faced by traders and investors in the country.
She said the conference also helps to share experiences and discover new ways to improve the business environment, stimulate investment and promote innovation, as an important pillar of economic development.
