More can be done to improve competitiveness

THE Governor of the Bank of Namibia (BoN), Tom Alweendo, has highlighted a number of factors affecting the country’s competitiveness on the global market.

Giving his speech at the Governor’s Annual Address in Windhoek on Wednesday, Alweendo said Namibia’s prosperity was mainly dependent on its economic competitiveness. “Sound macroeconomic policies, a stable political environment and effective legal institutions are necessary but not sufficient conditions to ensure a prosperous economy.”Alweendo said as globalisation of the world economy was now in full force, the issue of competitiveness was now under ‘sharp focus’.He noted that in spite of Namibia’s still scoring fairly well on many of its macroeconomic indicators, its global ranking had been declining, adding that this proved that economic stability alone was not sufficient to ensure high growth.Namibia’s overall competitive score dropped to 3,7 in 2005 from 4,0 in 2004.Some of the issues that drive competitiveness are the performance of the economy, a functioning legal system, government regulations and policies which have a direct impact on business operations, and a committed and skilled labour force.The central bank Governor said it was unfortunate that Namibia was lagging behind in a number of these areas.He said the country lacked sufficient legal personnel, often resulting in cases being postponed unnecessarily, which could damage its competitiveness.The economy, said Alweendo, needed to grow a faster pace for it to be competitive.Registering a business in Namibia, due to a number of bureaucratic procedures, is said to take an average 90 days – which is way too much compared to other countries which get the job done within a week.”Decisions by investors on locating businesses in the country would depend not only on the costs of doing business but also on the quality of services that contribute to the business environment.”Creating a friendly business environment for private-sector activities, which is free of distortions and underpinned by efficient public institutions and transparent regulatory frameworks, will certainly enhance the competitiveness of the Namibian economy.”Alweendo said there were a number of countries with plenty of natural resources, which nevertheless remained mired in poverty because of a lack of skilled labour.He expressed satisfaction with the steps the Government was taking to ensure that knowledge became an important part of national development.”It is, therefore, encouraging to note the Government’s efforts to improve the quality of our education through the ETSIP (Education And Training Sector Improvement) programme.We hope that the long-term result of this programme is a skilled labour force that is able to compete globally.””Sound macroeconomic policies, a stable political environment and effective legal institutions are necessary but not sufficient conditions to ensure a prosperous economy.”Alweendo said as globalisation of the world economy was now in full force, the issue of competitiveness was now under ‘sharp focus’.He noted that in spite of Namibia’s still scoring fairly well on many of its macroeconomic indicators, its global ranking had been declining, adding that this proved that economic stability alone was not sufficient to ensure high growth.Namibia’s overall competitive score dropped to 3,7 in 2005 from 4,0 in 2004.Some of the issues that drive competitiveness are the performance of the economy, a functioning legal system, government regulations and policies which have a direct impact on business operations, and a committed and skilled labour force.The central bank Governor said it was unfortunate that Namibia was lagging behind in a number of these areas.He said the country lacked sufficient legal personnel, often resulting in cases being postponed unnecessarily, which could damage its competitiveness.The economy, said Alweendo, needed to grow a faster pace for it to be competitive.Registering a business in Namibia, due to a number of bureaucratic procedures, is said to take an average 90 days – which is way too much compared to other countries which get the job done within a week.”Decisions by investors on locating businesses in the country would depend not only on the costs of doing business but also on the quality of services that contribute to the business environment.”Creating a friendly business environment for private-sector activities, which is free of distortions and underpinned by efficient public institutions and transparent regulatory frameworks, will certainly enhance the competitiveness of the Namibian economy.”Alweendo said there were a number of countries with plenty of natural resources, which nevertheless remained mired in poverty because of a lack of skilled labour.He expressed satisfaction with the steps the Government was taking to ensure that knowledge became an important part of national development.”It is, therefore, encouraging to note the Government’s efforts to improve the quality of our education through the ETSIP (Education And Training Sector Improvement) programme.We hope that the long-term result of this programme is a skilled labour force that is able to compete globally.”