Botswana pitches for Indian expertise, investment - CII
09 Dec '06
3 min read
Botswana is keen to attract Indian investment in minerals, especially diamonds, copper and coal beneficiation. To facilitate this, it opened its High Commission in India in April and plans to shortly set up an office of the Botswana Export Development and Investment Authority (BEDIA), said Botswana President, Festus Mogae.
He was a speaking at a business luncheon meeting organized jointly by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) and Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Assocham) here on Friday.
The President, who came in from meeting Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, said, “We are willing to negotiate a free trade agreement between India and the South African Customs Union (SACU) to overcome the protective tariffs that exist within SACU.”
Botswana and India, he said, have agreed on a double-taxation avoidance treaty and are negotiating an investment protection agreement. These are just some of the investment-boosting measure the two countries are talking about. “We want to attract Indian investment in technology as well as its business acumen especially in the small and medium enterprises sector.”
The President said his country offered an attractive investment climate. The corporate tax rates are low, at 15 percent for manufacturing and 25 percent for non-manufacturing industries.
There is a negotiable tax holiday of up to 10 years. Botswana has a high credit rating, a transparent governance process, continuity of policy, rule of law and respects the sanctity of contracts.
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