STIFLING red tape rather than corruption is the main inhibitor to trade in Africa, says Christo Wiese, chairman of Shoprite Holdings and Pepkor. Speaking at the Cape Town Press Club on Wednesday, Mr Wiese said intra-African trade only consists of 15% of the continent’s total movement of goods and services, while the remaining 85% is with the rest of the world. Quoting his Shoprite Holdings CEO Whitey Basson, Mr Wiese said about 1,600 different forms had to be filled in, most of them required by the South African government, in order to move goods between this country and Mozambique. "Much more than corruption, it is the stifling red tape in Africa that is inhibiting trade," Mr Wiese said. In a report examining the barriers that curb cross-border trade on the continent‚ the World Bank said Africa’s largest retailer, Shoprite, spends a hefty $20‚000 (about R220,000) a week on import permits to truck meat‚ milk and other goods to its stores in Zambia alone.
Posted on: Thu, 29 Aug 2013 09:57:44 +0000
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