From ghost workers to ghost investors?
The leading story on the front-page of The Citizen last Thursday revealed three distinctly intriguing developments – intriguing at least according to ‘My Book of Things!’
One was that the newly-appointed Commissioner for Labour in the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), Mr Gabriel Malata, suspended the official system under which work permits are granted “until he learns how the system works!”
Isn’t it most consternating, o’esteemed readers, that a single official can unilaterally, arbitrarily and indefinitely suspend an operating public system simply because he’s new to the place, is ignorant of the system – and ostensibly wants to learn about it first? [See ‘TIC calls for law review to facilitate investment’ by Elizabeth Edward. The Citizen: December 6, 2018].
This oddity came to light when Prime Minister Majaliwa Kassim Majaliwa made a familiarization/inspection tour of the Tanzania Investment Centre (TIC) Headquarters in Dar es Salaam on December 4 this year.
In the event, the prime minister rightly remarked that “it’s unacceptable that the system is not operating just because of one person … Operations should continue while he (the Labour Commissioner) is still learning!” How true; but, more so: how considerate of our Big-Hearted prime minister…
Premier Majaliwa also took the opportunity of his auspicious visit to instruct the TIC Board and Management “to get rid of all the bureaucratic tendencies at the Investment Centre” – stressing that “unnecessary bureaucratic procedures scare away investors.” How true…
Up until recently when TIC operations were shifted bag and baggage to the Prime Minister’s Office, the Centre operated under the ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment.
TIC is a one-stop facilitator for all investment activities, and coordinates related activities by other government institutions.
These latter include – but are not limited to – the Tanzania Bureau of Standards; the Tanzania Food and Drugs Authority; the Occupational Safety and Health Agency; the National Identification Authority, and the National Environment Management Council.
The second intriguing development is that – despite TIC being the premier investments facilitator-cum-guide-cum-what-have-you in Tanzania’s investments stakes – the Centre has no say worth a rusty red cent when it comes to investments in the petroleum and natural gas sub-sectors of the wider Energy sector of the national Economy.
This is quite distressing – especially considering that these sub-sectors are proving to be of substantial econo-growth potential going forward. The third oddity lies in numbers and figures.
According to The Citizen last Thursday, TIC reportedly “registered 905 projects worth Sh13.2 billion in the last three years At those numbers, the average value of each of the project investment was a relatively measly Sh14.585635 million – less than the price of a decent ‘tuk-tuk’ auto rickshaw (‘Bajaj’)! But, even more consternating is that the numbers of projects invested in by Tanzanians (307projects), by foreigners (319) and joint ventures involving both Tanzanian and foreign investors (277) total 903 (nine-zero-three) in all.
This leaves two out of the 905 TIC-declared projects which are NOT Tanzanian, non-Tanzanian or joint ventures!
Talk of ghost workers… Sorry; I mean ghost investors! Ye gods…
