TUESDAY, 5:00PM:
Mozambican President Joaquim Chissano told an investment summit on Tuesday that Southern African countries should guard against competing among themselves to attract investment.
Presenting the keynote speech at the International Herald Tribune Southern African trade and investment summit in Gaborone, Botswana, he said such competition would be counter-productive, whereas the emergence of Southern Africa as a regional market with more than 200 million people could strengthen opportunities for co-operation among member states. The concept of partnership for development could well reshape relationships between governments, the private sector and civil society in all countries in Southern Africa, he said.
“We see this `smart partnership’ as one in which the different parties will join hands and share ideas on the way forward. The ultimate goal will be a `win-win’ relationship in which all parties benefit.
“We need to boost our synergies,” he said, “combining the efforts among government, business community and the civil societies at national as well as regional and international levels.”
Seen as a region, Southern Africa offers a wide range of investment opportunities, he said, with agricultural potential, water resources, forestry and mineral resources and large, barely-exploited reserves of energy such as coal, natural gas and oil. It also offers potential for manufacturing and tourism.