BY BACHA ZEWDIE
Ministry of Trade and Industry in collaboration with the former Ethiopian Chamber of Commerce and Sectoral Associations (ECCSA) has designed a draft proclamation that replaces proclamation No.341/2003 to re-establish Chambers of Commerce and Industry (CCI).
There are several rationales for amending the proclamation. Among these; one is the need for encouraging investors in the commerce and manufacturing sector so that they contribute their share in the nation’s economy organized under their own chamber to establish modern, accessible and efficient trade system.
This in turn would lay the foundation for a free market system in the country. The other is, in order to create influential chambers of commerce that are able to play a meaningful role in the economy via providing dominant and acceptable recommendations.
The need to create a clear procedure that invites accountability and enables the business and manufacturing industry participants to expand the income base of the chambers and number of members is the additional factor to issue the new proclamation.
In addition, it also takes in to consideration the necessity to surmount the limitation in the capacity and scattered arrangement of the chambers aiming to protect the right and benefit of the members.
Recently, ECCSA has conducted a one-day input gathering discussion forum on the draft proclamation to re-establish chambers of Commerce and Industry. Eshetie Asfaw, State Minister of Trade and Industry said: “As it is vividly known, many reforms in the business, industry and private sectors have been underway in our country since the enactment of homegrown economic reform. The Chamber of Commerce and Sectoral Associations have also been playing a constructive role in the reform.”
The State Minister added that in order to enable the sector contributes its utmost share in the ongoing economic reform, it is essential to enact processes and legal frameworks that give way to free participation in an organized manner.
The chamber of commerce and sectoral associations is among the institutions lasted longer in the country though there have been ups and downs and changes in its organizational forms depending on the political changes in the country. Besides, it is the leading institution that lasted until now, he said.
Global experiences reveal that in countries where competitive and strong chambers of commerce are formed, they play irreplaceable role in the economy particularly in terms of creating fair business practices, expanding industries, filling gaps in the sector. They also play an ambassadorial role in the economic diplomacy front.
In this regard, strong and ethically built up chambers of commerce and industry need to be established here in Ethiopia to help the country become competitive regionally, continentally and globally. This would also support the country’s endeavor to become a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO), he noted.
The State Minister further said that the Chamber of Commerce and Sectoral Association establishment proclamation No. 341/2003, along with its limitation, has brought progress in the chamber and the sectoral associations. However, there have been repeated questions by the members of the chamber that the proclamation needs to be revised in a way that can fairly serve the business community, the state and the community.
Considering the request of the business community and the manufacturing sector stakeholders, the Ministry of Trade and Industry found it essential to revisit the proclamation in collaboration with the concerned bodies and focusing on the bottlenecks that hinder its implementation on the ground. Therefore, recognizing the need for the amendment of the proclamation and considering the existing situation in the country and the world, The Ministry, with the inclusion and participation of concerned bodies such as Chambers of Commerce and Sectoral Associations, has prepared the draft proclamation. Hence, it was aiming to gather inputs from stakeholders using such platforms, Eshetie said.
“Our Ministry will continue its activity by modernizing the trading system, upgrading productivity and strengthening the ongoing trade and procedural package follow up system. It is undertaking an inclusive business process and legal framework directives reform,” he said.
For instance, the commercial law that had served for about 60 years is amended in accordance with the international experience and put on the table for discussion. The trade registration and licensing proclamation No. 980/2016 had also been reformed in the way that modernizes the trading system, the State Minister noted.
He also added the country’s current trade system does not fulfill international standards. Therefore, the reform system to apply online process that enables everyone to access the ministry’s service everywhere is underway and will be functional within a short period of time. This system serves global traders in addition to the local ones.
The country is also preparing trade as well as export and import quality policies for the first time. Therefore, investors have a great responsibility to upgrade the country’s export and import trade by utilizing these policies, the state minister underlined.
Engineer Melaku Ezezew, president of the ECCSA for his part said that the proclamation No. 341/2003 is controversial in its nature.
The proclamation has played a destructive role by discouraging a cooperative spirit among the business community and creating mistrust among members. It has rather served as a black curtain towards the trade community, members and leaders of the chamber’s family who have been asking time and again for the amendment of the proclamation.
The president said: “The proclamation in action that has been operational for over the last 18 years has many gaps to go in line with the reform the country is undertaking. “Accordingly, we have been repeatedly talking that the proclamation is full of jargons and contradictions. It did not also take local contexts into consideration and was not applicable.”
The fact that the government vowed to improve the participation of the private sector in the economic reform and other procedural reforms are good news for the chamber, Melaku said.
Allowing the private sector to be organized will help the sector form solid relationships with the concerned entities especially the government and development partners. Existence of a strong chamber that incorporates the majority of the trade community will play vital role in accelerating the country’s growth and development as it holds the major position in the reform being undertaken in the country, the president stated.
Therefore, in order to enable the sector to play its utmost role in the country’s economic growth and development and hold its consistent representation, amendment of the CCSA establishment proclamation must be the task to be executed with urgency, he stressed.
The Ethiopian Herald January 24/2021
