UNITED STATES LAUNCHES BIZCLIR REPORT AND SECURED TRANSACTIONS REFORM

United States Agency for International Development Acting Mission Director Charles Crane addresses attendees at the launch of the Tanzania BizCLIR Report and Secured Transactions Reform
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The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) on Monday, September 29th, launched the BizCLIR report, an assessment of Tanzania’s business climate, and kicked off efforts to develop a modern Secured Transactions System for Tanzania’s financial sector. The event was attended by representatives of government, the private sector, and the donor community.

Acting USAID Mission Director Charles Crane opened the event by pointing out the usefulness of the BizCLIR report in both diagnosing the challenges that face Tanzania’s business enabling environment and providing concrete recommendations for reform. Mr. Crane stated that, "Private Sector development is key to sustainable economic growth and poverty alleviation, and these findings represent a major step forward in identifying the challenges and constraints to doing business in Tanzania."

The first session of the half-day conference, led by Wade Channell, Senior Legal Reform Advisor for USAID, highlighted key findings of the report. Tanzania has improved somewhat over the past year in terms of ease of starting a new business and receives high marks for enforcement of contracts. However, Tanzania ranks 127 among 181 countries for the overall ease of doing business. Emphasizing opportunities for improvement, Mr. Channell pointed out that concrete reforms, like a modern Secured Transactions System, will help to lift Tanzania in the rankings and attract both domestic and foreign investment.

The second session of the day focused on the specifics of a Secured Transactions System including a modern pledge registry, legal reform and a widespread training program. Mr. Agapiti Kobello, Director of Banking Supervision for the Bank of Tanzania joined Mr. Crane in offering support for this type of reform, noting “Secured Transactions Reform is an essential pillar of a reforming financial system, especially in a country like ours.” Mr. Kobello challenged the banking community to, “seize on this reform as an opportunity to innovate with new products and a strategy focused on expanding into new areas, such as agriculture, which have so much growth potential.”

For more information, please visit us at http://tanzania.usembassy.gov. For further information about BizCLIR, please visit www.bizclear.com.