Par Phil Sandick*
Botswana. Post publié(e) le 2009-11-24

In June 2009, when the Strategy for Economic Diversification and Sustainable Growth was presented both to Parliament and to the Ntlo Ya Dikgosi (House of Chiefs), Botswana yet again displayed her ability to rise above her own past and forge a path into a productive future. Freeing a nation from historical chains and attempting an approach more focused on adaptability than on being adapted is one of the hardest infrastructure renovations an administration can undertake—just ask President Obama. Unfortunately, in the quickening pace of the early 21st Century, it is also one of the most necessary.

While there are many noteworthy aspects of the Strategy, I’d like to focus on one of personal interest: the One-Stop Shop (“OSS”) approach. When I wanted a Residence Permit, I applied to the Ministry of Labor and Home Affairs Department of Immigration and Citizenship; when I wanted to start a company, I applied to the Ministry of Commerce and Industry; when I wanted to drive, I got my license from the Ministry of Works and Transport. Each step took time. Lots of time. As of 2008, the Economist’s Pocket World in Figures ranked Botswana 11 in the world for highest number of days taken to register a new company: 108, where it took only 96 in neighboring Zimbabwe.

Botswana’s inherited bureaucracy can be a bit overwhelming, so the Strategy’s creation of a “One Stop Investment Shop” within the Botswana Export and Development Investment Authority (“BEDIA”) is a welcome measure. The same can be said of the proposed “Diamond Office”, which would take care of the myriad needs of a corporation dealing with diamond mining, polishing, dealing, et cetera. A private sector entity would need not only the standard licenses and permits, but also those concerning the exploration and exploitation of natural resources. The Ministries of Mines, Energy and Water Resources; of Environment, Wildlife and Tourism; and of Lands and Housing would doubtless be involved.

The innovation of OSSes as a way of finessing an antiquated and cumbersome system is welcome, indeed. In March of 2008, the World Bank ran a workshop on setting up a One-Stop business registration shop in Tajikistan. Prior to that, they published a report on Portugal’s success with OSSes on their doingbusiness.org website. The goal is always to make it easier for the private sector to flourish, and this approach would certainly make Botswana more inviting as an investment opportunity and corporate location.

The only problem is that it would also undercut an existing consultant industry in which private consultants already perform this very duty. They scurry around hither and thither, constantly waiting in queues (or avoiding the queues because they know the system so well) and acquiring the necessary signatures and stamps. They do the various jobs that sound so easy in the US Embassy’s guide for companies that want to do business in Botswana: “The common practice is to engage a local attorney or a company secretary to arrange for a company registration, which can typically be completed within two weeks, although efforts are being made to expedite the process.” That’s good advice for a pre-existing corporation—and good PR for Botswana—but starting a business is a vastly different operation from merely “establishing an office”.

If the Government of Botswana wants to get it right, they’d set up an OSS and include the experienced consultants among the ranks. The consultants would require very little training, and they could be incentivized to continue, into public service, the work-ethic that won them repeat clients in their days of private practice. That would be a model for any country to follow.

*Phil Sandick is a graduate of Columbia University.