Prime Minister Hailemariam Dessalegn said a favorable condition wherein local investors could engage in manufacturing would be created by removing the obstacles that hamper them from entering the sector.
Speaking at the Second National Business Conference, the premier said his government will strive to solve the problems local investors face with respect to good governance, finance, land provision, power interruptions and the like.
The government and investors should work jointly as the private sector plays a key role in the economy of the country and determines the growth of the nation, he added.
The PM said the manufacturing sector is largely left to the private investor and the government will invest only in the sectors the private investors could not embark upon.
With respect to taxation, Hailemariam stated that extensive reform works have been undertaken to establish a modern payment system and it is important to create a system in which the investor would pay tax without entering into dispute with the government.
In relation to this, the premier urged investors to meet their national obligation by keeping their accounting books in order.
The other bottleneck that has obstructed the growth of both the government and the investors is rent seeking, he noted, calling on both parties to join hands in the fight to eliminate the scourge.
Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn said auditors hired by the private sector and incompetent civil servants are hindrances to the tax payment system and these should be responsibly checked.
Responding to the complaint of investors about shortage of loan, the premier said government banks would lend 52 percent of the allotted amount of loan to private investors.
However, he added, there is discrepancy of supply and demand of loans as the amount of money collected from the public is low since the saving culture in Ethiopia is weak.
In spite of this, the Ethiopian Development Bank has disbursed 20 billion birr to the private sector in the last Ethiopian fiscal year, according to the prime minister. The government will set aside special loan to investors who engage in manufacturing sector, he further stressed.
President of Ethiopian Chamber of Commerce and Sectoral Associations, Solomon Afework, on his part said lack of technical capability, capital and the red tape in government offices are the factors that discourage the investor from engaging in the manufacturing sector.
He added that support of the government to the private sector is therefore essential to consolidate the industrial sector and make it competitive in export trade.
[ENA]