East African Business Week (Kampala)
Stephen Asiimwe
22 October 2007
Bujumbura — As Burundi recovers from 14 years of civil war, the country has embarked on a comprehensive strategic programme aimed at lifting the economy from years of neglect and conflict. Last week the government commissioned a study that will map out a post conflict vision for the country's development agenda and usher in an environment of private-public competitiveness.
The initiative codenamed The Vision for Commercial and industrial development strategy for Burundi, is being sponsored by a World Bank programme, The Economic Management Project, PAGE (Project D'Appui a la Gestion Economique (PAGE)), and is being undertaken by the OTF Group, was inaugurated at PAGE headquarters in Bujumbura last week.
The OTF Group is a competitiveness consulting firm that is helping developing countries with expertise and capacity building.
The results from the two-month study from the OTF Group will form the basis on which Burundi will create and build an environment for more innovative, increase productivity and create competitive advantages in five main sectors.
"We have about 50 sectors in which to build on but we will identify the top five sectors and develop these," said Eric Kacou, the lead OTF consultant.
The OTF Group will be looking at the different synergies that have interplay in economic development. We'll look at the infrastructure, human resource, finance, natural resources, institutions, technical know-how and the culture as a basis from which to build framework for the competitiveness strategy.
The launch at the PAGE conference facility was attended by key players from private, public sectors and officials from USAID agribusiness development programmes.
"Burundi has got great potential to grow from its current position to a leading economic house in the region. For instance we have very good soils that can sustain the growth of organic products and can fetch good prices at international markets," said Mr. Seleus Nezerwe, PAGE chief in Burundi, who commissioned he study.
The OTF group will in the next two months traverse the countryside and meet key business leaders, private sector players and to find out from them what can make Burundi competitive.
The country is greatly endowed with nickel, uranium, rare peat, cobalt, copper, platinum, vanadium, hydropower, niobium, tantalum, gold, tin, tungsten, kaolin, limestone. However, very little of this has been exploited commercially. Wiith a population of 8 million, and landlocked, Burundi has more than 90% of its population dependent on subsistence agriculture.
Economic growth depends on coffee and tea exports, which account for 90% of foreign exchange earnings. Other exports are sugar, cotton and hides. The ability to pay for imports, therefore, rests primarily on weather conditions.
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