GTZ Seminar
Strategies and Practices Toward a More
Enabling Business and Investment Climate
in Africa
– MAKING REFORMS WORK –
Mount Grace Country House Hotel
Magaliesburg, Gauteng, South Africa
22-25 May 2006
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Strategies and Practices Toward a More Enabling Business
and Investment Climate in Africa
– MAKING REFORMS WORK –
OBJECTIVE OF THE SEMINAR
The objective of the seminar is to provide participants – who are mainly GTZ-funded projects
operating in Africa – with practical approaches, tools and methods they can apply in their work
which help them better understand, assess and improve the business and investment climate
(BIC) for private sector development. The focus of the seminar is on ‘making reforms work’ –
sharing experiences and practices that improve the effectiveness of GTZ-support for BIC
reform in Africa.
SEMINAR PROGRAM
DAY 1: MONDAY, 22 MAY 2005
10.00 – 13:00
SEMINAR REGISTRATION
12:00 – 13:00
Lunch
13:00 – 13:30
Welcome and seminar overview
Simon White, Seminar Facilitator
13:30 – 14:00
Keynote address: Programme-based aid and technical assistance – its relevance for
improving the BIC
Julius Spatz, GTZ Eschborn
14:30 – 15:00
Discussion
PART 1: DEBATES, CHALLENGES AND ISSUES AFFECTING B.I.C. REFORM IN AFRICA
The first part focuses on some of the key debates, challenges and issues affecting BIC reform in Africa.
The purpose of the session is to help participants become more aware of the issues affecting the success
of BIC reform. This awareness should lead to improved practices in BIC reform programmes. The
session will be conducted as a panel session. Each panellist will speak for 10-15 minutes following
which there will be short time for questions of clarification.
Once all presentations have been made, discussion will be open to all.
15:30-17:30
Government perspectives
Ms Mavis MacCarthy
Coordinator, Ministry for Private Sector development and PSI, Accra
Regional overview: Doing business in Africa
Mary Agboli
Operations Officer, PEP Africa,
International Finance Corporation, Johannesburg
An enterprise perspective to BIC reform in Africa
Hirji Shah
Past Chairman of East African Business Council, Nairobi
Public-private dialogue in Africa: Experiences, successes and failures
Thomas Bedenbecker
Senior Adviser,
Advisory Service Private Enterprise: Southern Africa, Johannesburg
17:30
End of Day 1
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DAY 2: TUESDAY, 23 MAY 2006
PART 2: CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK FOR GTZ-SUPPORTED BIC REFORMS
This session presents a conceptual framework for understanding the way the BIC contributes to
economic growth and poverty reduction. It will help participants better understand the key elements of
the BIC and how BIC reform contributes to broader development goals.
08:30 – 09:00
Role of the BIC in enterprise development and donor approaches to reform
Simon White, Seminar Facilitator
09:00 – 09:30
GTZ approach to BIC reform and impact chains
Julius Spatz, GTZ Eschborn
09:30 – 10:15
Key actors in the BIC: roles in reform processes
A facilitated exercise and discussion
10:15 – 10:45
Morning tea break
10:45 – 11:15
A new agenda for improving public-private dialogue
Sonja Kurz, GTZ Eschborn; discussion
11:15 – 12:00
The political economy of reform and drivers of change analysis
Facilitated discussion
12:00 – 13:30
Lunch
PART 3: GTZ EXPERIENCES IN BIC REFORM IN AFRICA: LESSONS, CHALLENGES
AND EMERGING GOOD PRACTICE
The third part of the programme focuses on the experiences of participants in supporting BIC reform in
Africa. This will be a highly interactive session in which participants get to know one another better and
where GTZ-funded projects operating in Africa are profiled with a focus on lessons learned, challenges
and emerging good practice.
13:30 – 15:30
Facilitated group discussion
15:00 – 15:30
Afternoon tea
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PART 4: ASSESSING THE BIC
This session presents a ways the BIC can be assessed. It represents an important opportunity to consider
the way in which BIC assessment methods shape reform programmes in Africa.
15:30 – 16:00
Overview of BIC assessment tools, information sources
Susanne Hartmann, GTZ Eschborn
16:00 – 16:40
Regional and local BIC assessment tools in use
Regional Business Climate Surveys
Kara Rawden
Senior Advisor, Advisory Service Private Enterprise: Southern Africa, Johannesburg
16:40 – 17:00
The National Business Climate Surveys in Malawi as a part of PPD
Kara Rawden
Senior Advisor, Advisory Service Private Enterprise: Southern Africa, Johannesburg
17:00 – 17:20
First Experiences with Local Business Climate Surveys: Ghana
Gertraud Faltermeier, Programme Manager, GTZ RuTIPP, Accra
Anya Schmidt, DED, Accra
17:20 - 17:40
First Experiences with Local Business Climate Surveys: Mozambique
Ralf Lanwehr,
Programme Manager, GFA, Sofala
17:40 – 18:15
General discussion on BIC assessments and programme design:
•
How do assessments inform programme design?
•
How to identify starting points or priorities for BIC reform?
DAY 3: WEDNESDAY, 24 MAY 2006
8:45 – 9:00
Review of programme
Simon White, Seminar Facilitator
PART 5: APPROACHES TO REGULATORY REFORM
This session examines an emerging theme in BIC reform that is gaining greater attention in Africa and
around the world. There is growing recognition that increasing regulatory burdens often stifle private
sector development. Understanding the impact of this burden on the private sector, and the economy as a
whole, and designing ways to reduce compliance costs of firms has become a key strategy in BIC
reform.
9:00 – 9:15
Overview: Regulatory reform for a better BIC
Simon White, Seminar Facilitator
9:15 – 10:00
Measuring the cost of regulatory compliance
Simon Dagut
Researcher, Small Business Project, Johannesburg
10:00 – 10:30
Morning tea break
10:30 – 11:15
Regulatory impact assessments: case study from Uganda
Patrick Banya,
Manager, Regulatory Best Practice Programme, Kampala
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11:15 – 12:00
One-Stop-Shops: case study from Ethiopia
Sileshi Lemma,
Head, Textile and Leather Department,
Ministry of Trade and Industry, Ethiopia
12:00 – 13:30
Lunch break
PART 6: MAKING REFORMS WORK – PARALLEL BREAKOUT SESSIONS
These sessions have been designed to provide participants with the opportunity to examine specific areas
of interest to BIC reform in more detail. Sessions will be held concurrently in different rooms. A
rapporteur will be chosen for each session to report back some of the key issues discussed in the
morning of the following day.
13:30 – 17:00
SESSION A: SUPPORTING A BETTER LOCAL BIC.
Session rapporteur: Susanne Hartmann
This session focuses on the interventions that support the improvements of local
BICs. Local BIC reform brings a new range of actors and challenges to development
programmes.
Session facilitator: Simon White
Session overview: Supporting a better local BIC
Simon White, Seminar Facilitator
Case study of Uganda: Streamlining business registration procedures with local
government
Patrick Banya,
Manager, Regulatory Best Practice Programme, Kampala, Uganda
Reducing local red tape for a better BIC
Shawn Cunningham
GTZ Local Economic Development Programme, Pretoria
Good practice: The dos and don’ts of local BIC reform
Discussion facilitated by session facilitator
13:30 – 17:00
SESSION B: REGIONAL INTEGRATION AND BIC REFORM
Session rapporteur: Kara Rawden
This session examines the importance of regional integration in promoting BIC
reform. Regional integration is a significant element in the improvement of national
BICs in Africa. It is a major concern for regional economic communities as well as
NEPAD.
Session facilitator: Regine Qualmann
Regional integration and the BIC: Paper only or practical implications for
business?
Regine Qualmann,
GTZ, Southern African Development Community
Non-tariff barriers monitoring mechanism - A regional level action programme for
BIC reform
Busso von Alvensleben
GTZ, East African Business Council
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Regional integration and BIC reform in Southern Africa
Victor Matale
Private Sector Development, NEPAD
Good practice: The dos and don’ts of regional integration and BIC reform
Discussion facilitated by session facilitator
OFFICIAL SEMINAR DINNER
DAY 4: THURSDAY, 25 MAY 2006
8:30 – 9:00
Reports from Wednesday breakout sessions
Key lessons for good reform practices and conditions required for successful reform
In this session a rapporteur from the previous breakout sessions will report on the
issues discussed in these session. Emphasis will be given to the cross-cutting issues
that affect the success of reforms to the BIC.
PART 7: B.I.C. REFORM AND POVERTY REDUCTION
This session has been designed to consider the contribution BIC reform makes to poverty
reduction. While it is generally understood that a better BIC will increase investment and create
economic growth, leading to the reduction of poverty, this link may not always occur
automatically. In some countries in Africa there are examples of ‘jobless growth’, where
economic growth occurs while unemployment and poverty remain the same or even increase.
This session examines ways where BIC reform can have a greater impact on poverty reduction.
9:00 – 9:30
Integration of BIC reforms into Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers
Julius Spatz, GTZ Eschborn
9:30 – 10:00
Integrating BIC reforms into the PRSP in Malawi
Joana Henseler, GTZ Malawi
10:00 – 10:30
Key ingredients to BIC reforms that contribute more directly to poverty reduction
A facilitated discussion
10:30 – 11:00
Morning tea break
11:00 – 12:30
Review of programme and seminar evaluation
Planning for next steps and follow-up
Speaker: to be determined
12:30
Close of seminar followed by lunch
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