- Tanzania is reviewing key business development laws to boost investments.
- One of the laws under review is the Companies Act and the Business Names (Registration) Act.
- Amended laws are set to create a more conducive investment environment.
The Tanzania business environment is expected to improve to a great deal thanks to ongoing efforts to amend non-conducive business laws.
It is expected that the business law amendment will serve to help the country attract investors by improving its business environment, the government has announced.
The government of Tanzania has made public its intention to review key laws in the country, including the Companies Act and the Business Names (Registration) Act, with a view to align the regulations with current global trends and market needs.
To this end, the government of Tanzania is now collecting stakeholders’ opinions ahead of the proposed law amendments.
While the two laws are often confused and intertwined, they are different but that is among the key issues that stakeholders want reviewed. It is argued that the two laws should be merged into one to ease business opening processes in the country.
However, as matters stand, the Companies Act works to regulate trading companies, impose tax on nominal capital and to regulate dividends and surpluses, to mention but a few.
On the other hand, the Business Names (Registration) Act is a law that specifically deals with the registration of business names under which a business is conducted, whether in partnership or otherwise.
“Upon the improvements, the two laws are expected to attract investors and boost ongoing efforts for the same,” reads the government media press release.
Efforts for the law reforms and the collection of stakeholders opinions are been conducted by the Law Reform Commission of Tanzania (LRCT). The LRCT is responsible to coordinate the collection off stakeholder views for consideration.
Already, legal stakeholders have met for a two-day meeting in Dar es Salaam Tanzania for a round table workshop spearheaded by the LRCT.
The Permanent Secretary of the Industry and Trade Ministry, Dr. Hashil Abdallah has reassured stakeholders of the government’s commitment to drive positive reforms in the country.
“We believe that these workshops will help us as government to understand shortfalls in the two legislations and allow us to make improvements in accordance to current economic development,” he said.
The Permanent Secretary, Dr. Abdallah said the goal of the law review is to motivate the growth and set of new businesses and investments.
“The envisaged new laws will attract more investors to invest in our country because after the amendments, we will have a much more conducive environment for investment,” Dr. Abdallah asserted.
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Tanzania business environment: Amendment focuses on two specific laws
In his speech read on his behalf by the Director-General of the Fair Competition Commission (FCC), Mr. William Erio, the PS said; “The new laws will enable Tanzanian traders to effectively participate in regional and international markets.”
On his part, LRCT’s Executive Secretary George Mandepo cited two distinct areas that the review will focus on as Chapter 212 of the Companies Act and Chapter 213 of the Business Names Registration Act.
Mr. Mandepo expressed optimism that after the changes, the laws will act as catalysts to improving Tanzania’s businesses environment. It is expected that after the changes then the laws will make the country a lot more competitive compared to its neighbours.
“We will value contributions from each stakeholder in this exercise of gathering views,” he reassured stakeholders.
“We are working on various angles to improve the country’s investment and trade…to achieve the desired changes, then we need friendly regulations and laws to govern the sector,” he urged.
Also present was BRELA’s Head of Companies and Business Names Registration, Mr. Isdor Nkindi who seconded the PS and the LRCT Executive Secretary.
He was also keen to point out that BRELA does recognize that there are weaknesses in the two laws and after amendment the the country will be much more business friendly.
“Today is the second step where we meet stakeholders and hear from them before moving to the next step of researching, doing analysis and validating for proposing amendments,” Mr. Nkindi explained.
Other than admitting to the existence of weaknesses he also said the laws are outdated, and must be changed to go in par with current technological changes in the operations of businesses and companies.
