DUSHANBE, October 22, 2008, Asia-Plus — Presentation of “Permit System in Tajikistan: What for and How to Change Licensing System in Tajikistan?” was made at the Press Club of the IFC – Tajikistan Business Enabling Environment Project in Dushanbe on October 21.
The event participants included representatives of media and the IFC project, as well as the head of the directorate of state support of entrepreneurship within the State Committee for Investments and State-owned Property Management (GosComInvest), Shuhrat Rahmatboyev, and the head of Secretariat of the Investment Council under the President of Tajikistan, Sherali Zardov.
During the meeting, it was noted that to carry out the reform in Tajikistan it is necessary to cancel outmoded permits and unify the duplicating permit rules as well as create a new licensing system that would meet requirements of market economy.
According to joint preliminary estimates of IFC, GosComInvest and the Investment Council, reform of the permit system reducing licensing rules by 40 percent saves annually up to US$1.5 million for Tajik entrepreneurs.
Speaking at the meeting, Ms. Madina Nourmatova, legal adviser, IFC’s Tajikistan SME Development Project, noted that the present Tajik licensing system meet the planned economy rather than the market economy.
According to her, the main problem of the country’spermit system is lack of the single legislation regulating that system. “More than 40 percent of the surveyed entrepreneurs have considered permits as the main obstacle in the way of starting business,” noted she. “Besides, permit issuing entails loss of time and considerable financial expenses. Small and medium-sized enterprises in Tajikistan spend 1.5 months and 665 somoni for getting all necessary permits. Newly established enterprises lose 8%-10% of their annual incomes due to financial expenses to get necessary permits”
During the presentation, it was noted that not all permits are necessary. There are arguable permits in the present system along with the necessary permits. The meeting participants termed resolution on operation of electrical heaters, permits for rates of application of raw materials, equipment and electricity, as well as permits for using vehicles working on liquefied gas transport and many others as arguable permits.
Naming the project for reviewing the permit system as the beginning of the program on improvement of places of Tajikistan in the world doing business ratings, Rahmatboyev noted, “We will reform the permit system to promote development of market economy in the country.”
According to Zardov, a working group was set last May for licensing issues and it has held five meetings since that time. “The reform of the permit system will be a major topic of the next session of the coordination council for improvement the business environment that will be held in November,” he said.
