Reflection on economic implications of Big Results Now

Last week’s column was on the “Big Result Now” (BRN). The focus was on the difference in quick delivering of results between Kenya and Tanzania. Important as it is supposed to be, BRN is discussed here with a focus on its economic implications.

BRN is part of Tanzania’s effort to transform the country from low into middle-income economy by 2025.

The model is adopted from Malaysia. To start with it will focus  on six priority areas of energy and natural gas, agriculture, water, education, transport and mobilisation of resources.

It is said that some 15 new priorities will be identified in the future. As a transformational development model, BRN can have various economic implications.

Timely delivery

BRN aims at timely delivery of public goods and services. This is relevant and important for the economy. Among the complaints in the world of business include slow and bureaucratic delivery by the public sector (the government). This hurts the economy and businesses and is among the causes of low economic and business competitiveness at firm and national level.

If the BRN leads to timely delivery of public goods and services, as partly enshrined in various client service charters, it will be healthy for the economy. Needed are quick and timely decision making and implementation of various interventions to improve the business and investment environment.

Budgetary implications

There are direct and indirect as well as fixed and variable costs associated with BRN. As part of the process, there has been intense eight-week, heavily focused problem-solving ‘labs’ for each of the priority sectors. Also the presidential delivery unit is in place and the ministries of the six priority sectors have to set up BRN units.

There are also costs associated with the experts from Malaysia’s Performance Management & Delivery Unit. All these have budgetary implications. There will also be a number of other cost drivers if BRN is to take off and operate smoothly.

One foresees cost drivers in terms of adding new priority sectors over the years, getting the communication strategy correct, educating the masses and the like if BRN is to deliver.

No wonder that the government of Tanzania had to request for financial support worth £4.95 million from the UK to implement phase I of BRN. For the sake of sustainability, one expects these cost drivers to be main streamed in the country’s annual budgets for the remaining 13 years of reaching Vision 2025 targets. To justify budgetary implications in the context of cost-benefit analysis and value for money, BRN has to deliver.

Is BRN economically justified?

BRN will naturally imply use of taxpayers’ money. It could be Tanzanian or donor countries’ taxpayers. One needs to ask whether it is economically justifiable to incur the costs related to BRN.

So long as BRN  solves the problems associated with weak, slow, irritating and costly implementation of various good visions, programmes, projects and activities in the government, the costs incurred will be justified. Likewise, if BRN fails to hold those responsible for delivery to account, there will be no value for money.

In the same line of thinking, BRN has to achieve the very much desired and long overdue acceleration in delivery of results if justice is to be done to the taxpayers’ money. All of the above have many and far-reaching economic implications.

Quick delivery of public goods and services stand to unlock the economic growth potential embedded in virtually all sectors of the economy. Quick delivery stands to awaken many big sleeping economic giants in Tanzania’s economic sector. It is only if BRN leads to the good targets of Vision 2025 that pecuniary costs involved can be justified.

The challenge here is that it will require a post-mortem to know whether BRN delivered or not. However, if well conceptualised and planned its success possibility should be embedded in itself. Making it well understood, critically and constructively debating and interrogating on its various aspects is very healthy.

Discussion issues

Inquisitive as we are supposed to be, there are a number of issues relating to BRN that need critical discussion and debates. Critical minds will question the uniqueness of this model compared to other development models that might have not delivered. The key issue in BRN is quick in implementation and delivery of outputs. In production economics outputs are a function of many variables called factor inputs.

Depending on the goods and services being produced, the inputs will be various optimal quantities and qualities of resources that are well balanced in the whole production system. They include correct kind of human, physical, financial, time and information resources.

For BRN to deliver, the existence of optimal resources including correct mindset, attitudes, disciplines, incentives and the like are needed. The question is, to what extent are they available?