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Botswana: Commonwealth to Support Country in Free Trade Zone
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 Published by the government of Zimbabwe |
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The Herald (Harare)
18 May 2008
Posted to the web 19 May 2008
Khonani Ontebetse
Gaborone
As part of Botswana's efforts to diversify the economy and reduce dependency on the mining sector, the Commonwealth is providing technical support to help set up a modern free economic trade zone in the country.
The proposed trade zone is inline with Botswana's National Development Plan of Action which aims to generate more employment, stimulate local business, and contribute to poverty alleviation and sustainable development.
It is anticipated that the establishment of the Free Trade Zone (FZ) Special Economic Zone (SEZ) will help attract more investment into the country and reduce the country's dependency on its mining sector, especially diamonds.
FZs/SEZs are designated areas within a country where barriers to trade and tariffs and bureaucratic requirements are eliminated.
As part of its assistance, the Commonwealth Secretariat is providing a legal expert who will work with the Botswana government to prepare a draft policy on FZs/SEZs that spells out Botswana's engagement with its neighbours, as well as the enactment of legislation that is consistent with commitments undertaken in the context of the World Trade Organisation Agreement as well as regional arrangements, most notably the Southern African Customs Union and SADC.
"FZs/SEZs are seen as a platform to attract foreign direct investment and accommodate new businesses. They provide a way to conduct experiments in taxation, labour dispensation and telecoms pricing, which can be expanded later on an economy-wide basis if they prove successful," said Kathy-Ann Brown, a legal expert at the secretariat.
Brown also noted that setting the FZs/SEZs was in line with Botswana's National Development Plan also known as Vision 2016 which aims to generate more employment, stimulate local business development and contribute to poverty alleviation and sustainable development.
The Commonwealth legal advisor added that in Botswana FZs/SEZs were "conceived as a means to achieve economic and investment objectives without rocking social and political boasts".
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The Secretariat is mandated to provide technical assistance of this kind to support the efforts of countries in attaining the Millennium Development Goals of poverty eradication and sustainable development.
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