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| Business |
| Study proposes review of 300 privatisation laws |
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by
Aubrey Mchulu, 02 February 2005
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19:15:31
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Privatisation Commission (PC) executive director Maziko Sauti-Phiri has said a final report of a study on the privatisation process has recommended a review of about 300 laws relating to the exercise.
Sauti-Phiri told a news conference in Blantyre on Thursday the legal framework review of privatisation is designed to make the process more vibrant and avoid past mistakes.
He said the 1,000-page final report of the study covers eight tasks and also tackles other issues like pre and post privatisation monitoring.
“Under the legal framework, for example, there are more than 300 laws to be amended. The report suggests pitfalls to be avoided and how best to move forward with the privatisation process,” said Sauti-Phiri.
He added that there are also proposals to strengthen the institutional capacity of the PC by, among other things, suggesting recruitment of sufficient personnel.
According to Sauti-Phiri, the report also proposes a review of the divestiture sequence plan (DSP)—a list of state-owned enterprises to be disposed-off over a given period as approved by cabinet in 1997.
The DSP has 100 organisations or commercially-oriented government departments out of which, since 1997, 35 have been finalised, 17 are underway and 24 are reserved for the future, according to the PC’s 2003 annual report.
Sauti-Phiri said some of the recommendations in the report are within the implementation of the PC while others are to be handled by the cabinet.
“Right now we are in the process of implementing the recommendations,” he said.
Last week, PC chairman Sam Kakhobwe told a high level cabinet conference on privatisation in Lilongwe that the PC had completed a strategic review of the programme and was seeking support on a number of key recommendations.
In his keynote address to the conference titled ‘Working with the private sector’, President Bingu wa Mutharika noted that one of the concerns about privatisation was short-term loss of jobs that often occurred.
Mutharika said that while government attempted to minimise the loss of jobs, it must be recognised that some problems associated with state-owned enterprises were caused by inefficiencies in production, overstaffing, corruption and misuse of resources.
“It is therefore necessary to put in place measures that will reduce the shock and suffering among our people that may be affected in the implementation of these reforms,” he said.
He said that government would establish a National Social Security Programme to offer social protection to groups of employees who are most vulnerable as a result of privatisation.
Mutharika said the programme would provide social services including counselling, financial management, retraining, job placements and access to resources to start businesses that will create jobs for themselves and other Malawians. |
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