The role of the Business Council
Nov 23, 2007
LAST WEEK, on the side lines of the Commonwealth Business Forum (CBF), The New Vision Business Editor Paul Busharizi interviewed the CBF Director General, Mohan Kaul, about the organisation and its role in developing the Commonwealth. The council is the organiser of the Business Forum.
LAST WEEK, on the side lines of the Commonwealth Business Forum (CBF), The New Vision Business Editor Paul Busharizi interviewed the CBF Director General, Mohan Kaul, about the organisation and its role in developing the Commonwealth. The council is the organiser of the Business Forum.
Question: Where did the Commonwealth Business Council begin and what was its intended goals?
Answer: In 1997, the British Prime Minister, John Major and the leader of the opposition at the time, Tony Blair, both asked the question: Is there an economic case for the commonwealth? This was before the CHOGM in Edinburgh that year. We contacted the London School of Economics. To begin with, we asked them to determine how much the commonwealth countries were trading with themselves and with the world.
The study discussed the “commonwealth factorâ€, that we share a common language, accounting and legal practices and public service structures. That means our institutions are based in the same principles and systems. This “Commonwealth factor†makes it easier to do business, reducing transaction costs by 10 – 20%
The study was then presented to Blair, who agreed there was a business case and during the CHOGM in Edinburgh, the Commonwealth Business Council (CBC) was launched. The council looked at five areas to promote, mobilise investment, remove barriers to trade, good governance and reducing the digital divide.
In all, the CBC would provide an interface between government and the private sector, developing and emerging markets, big and small business and in doing so, we should increase the role of the private sector in national economies.
This was all based on the belief that economic empowerment of people is a must, poverty is not an asset, economic empowerment comes when people have access to jobs and wealth.
So 10 years down the road, what do you count as the CBC’s achievements?
We organised the first
investment forum in Tanza
nia in 2000. When I look at Tanzania now and compare with then, it has moved on. In the same year, we did an investment forum in Nigeria where MTN was introduced to Nigeria and now they are the most successful mobile company in the country.
In 2006, we had another investment forum in Sierra Leone. We have been working closely with those governments and you can see the ensuing economic growth. What CBC has done is created access to the highest offices in the land and the highest in the corporate world.
But especially in Africa, the challenges of investor attraction persist?
You know, if you say a bad thing, you don’t have to repeat it but the good has to be repeated. Investors like to be told over and over again, assured of the safety of their investment.
So you see business playing a larger role in society than just creating jobs?
The Millenium Development Goals (MDGs) will not be achieved by governments on their own, you have to get the private sector cash involved…. We are trying to find a way for these companies to contribute to the attainment of MDGs.
The way I see it, governments and the private sector are chasing a common goal. Government has to have economic development and people growth. The private sector needs growth and needs to make money. So if you look at the government and business agendas, they are the same but there is little trust between them.
The commonwealth, as an institution, has to look at how do governments and the private sector work together. There has been a problem of trust and transparency in the past. Ten years ago, there was a different agenda but now increasingly the economic and government agendas are coming together.
Question: Where did the Commonwealth Business Council begin and what was its intended goals?
Answer: In 1997, the British Prime Minister, John Major and the leader of the opposition at the time, Tony Blair, both asked the question: Is there an economic case for the commonwealth? This was before the CHOGM in Edinburgh that year. We contacted the London School of Economics. To begin with, we asked them to determine how much the commonwealth countries were trading with themselves and with the world.
The study discussed the “commonwealth factorâ€, that we share a common language, accounting and legal practices and public service structures. That means our institutions are based in the same principles and systems. This “Commonwealth factor†makes it easier to do business, reducing transaction costs by 10 – 20%
The study was then presented to Blair, who agreed there was a business case and during the CHOGM in Edinburgh, the Commonwealth Business Council (CBC) was launched. The council looked at five areas to promote, mobilise investment, remove barriers to trade, good governance and reducing the digital divide.
In all, the CBC would provide an interface between government and the private sector, developing and emerging markets, big and small business and in doing so, we should increase the role of the private sector in national economies.
This was all based on the belief that economic empowerment of people is a must, poverty is not an asset, economic empowerment comes when people have access to jobs and wealth.
So 10 years down the road, what do you count as the CBC’s achievements?
We organised the first
investment forum in Tanza
nia in 2000. When I look at Tanzania now and compare with then, it has moved on. In the same year, we did an investment forum in Nigeria where MTN was introduced to Nigeria and now they are the most successful mobile company in the country.
In 2006, we had another investment forum in Sierra Leone. We have been working closely with those governments and you can see the ensuing economic growth. What CBC has done is created access to the highest offices in the land and the highest in the corporate world.
But especially in Africa, the challenges of investor attraction persist?
You know, if you say a bad thing, you don’t have to repeat it but the good has to be repeated. Investors like to be told over and over again, assured of the safety of their investment.
So you see business playing a larger role in society than just creating jobs?
The Millenium Development Goals (MDGs) will not be achieved by governments on their own, you have to get the private sector cash involved…. We are trying to find a way for these companies to contribute to the attainment of MDGs.
The way I see it, governments and the private sector are chasing a common goal. Government has to have economic development and people growth. The private sector needs growth and needs to make money. So if you look at the government and business agendas, they are the same but there is little trust between them.
The commonwealth, as an institution, has to look at how do governments and the private sector work together. There has been a problem of trust and transparency in the past. Ten years ago, there was a different agenda but now increasingly the economic and government agendas are coming together.