DAR ES SALAAM, June 7 (Xinhua) -- Tanzanian President John Magufuli on Friday pointed out a number of challenges that disrupted the business environment in the east African nation and vowed to address them.
Magufuli criticized state-owned institutions for creating unfavorable business climate.
The president was addressing prominent businessmen in the commercial capital Dar es Salaam in a meeting broadcast live by state-owned television Tanzania Broadcasting Corporation (TBC).
He said the existence of excessively complicated administrative procedures in government was one of the factors that discouraged sustainable growth of business activities.
He told the business people from all districts and regions across the country that the current bureaucracy in the government made it difficult for the business environment to flourish in the country.
Magufuli said the tax burden was another challenge particularly in the tourism sector.
The head of state condemned the tendency of some local government authorities of introducing new taxes without prior consultations with the central government.
The president admitted that despite the government's efforts to end corruption, there were still some government officials who embraced the malpractice.
"I am aware there are some government officials at the Tanzania Revenue Authority and Tanzania Ports Authority and other authorities who demand and receive bribes from traders," he told the businessmen at State House.
At the same time, Magufuli admitted that the government has for many years failed to put in place a proper mechanism to empower small-scale entrepreneurs.
However, Magufuli reassured them of his government's commitment to empower small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
"The SMEs contribute revenue to the gross domestic product. A failure to empower them does not only affect them but also denies the government sufficient revenues," he said.
He further criticized financial institutions for their failure to issue soft loans to low-profile business people in the country.
"Most of the loans are issued to big companies based in urban centers yet there are business people in rural areas that also need capital," he said.
Magufuli instructed relevant authorities to effectively address the challenge and make sure the loans also benefited small-scale entrepreneurs in the country.
