NMB, ZIPA team up to provide online services to investors

 

NMB Bank’s chief executive officer, Ruth Zaipuna (second left), and Zanzibar Investment Promotion Agency (Zipa) executive director, Shariffa A. Shariffa, exchange documents after signing a Memorandum of Understanding to enhance online delivery of services to investors. Looking on are Minister of State President’s Office (Labour, Economy, and Investments) Mudrik Ramadhan Soraga (centre), NMB’s chief of wholesale banking, Alfred Shao, and director general of E-Government Agency, Said A. Said. PHOTO | THE CITIZEN CORRESPONDENT

By The Citizen Reporter

Media/news company Mwananchi Communication Limmited

Summary

·         The three-year deal is geared towards upgrading the Zanzibar Investment Electronic Window (ZIeW) and link it with other government agencies

Dar es Salaam. NMB Bank Plc and the Revolutionary Government of Zanzibar have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that seeks to enhance online services for investors.

The three-year deal between the lender and the Zanzibar Investment Promotion Agency (Zipa) is geared towards upgrading the Zanzibar Investment Electronic Window (ZIeW) which the two organisations cooperated in its creation during the first phase of the investor e-service improvement project, NMB Bank said in a statement yesterday.

According to the statement, which was availed to the media in Dar es Salaam yesterday, the MoU signing in Zanzibar was graced by the Minister of State in the Zanzibar President’s Office (Labour, Economy, and Investments), Mr Mudrik Ramadhan Soraga, who said the pact meant a lot in the digital transformation agenda of the Zanzibar government.

“This partnership means a lot to the government’s digital transformation journey, which, among other things, seeks to ensure all its operations and delivery of public services are digitised by 2026,” he said.

The new e-venture will, among other things, integrate ZIeW with other e-government portals.

NMB Bank’s chief executive officer, Ruth Zaipuna, said adding value to the e-one-stop centre will accelerate investment in Zanzibar and turn Zipa into a centre of excellence in conveniently providing quality and speedy services to investors.

She said the project will also link ZIeW with other regulatory dockets, such as the Immigration Department and the Zanzibar Business and Property Registration Agency.

Subsidiary goals of the partnership include joint promotion of investment incentives and opportunities, she added, noting that the bank will also be offering investors financial and fiscal solutions, including digital tax collection.

The Zipa executive director, Shariff Ali Shariff, said during the first phase of the ZIeW, a number of accomplishments have been attained, including an increase in registration requests and fee payments made digitally.

According to him, it has now become quicker for an investor with all the documents to register and receive the investment certificate even before entering Zanzibar.

Zanzibar President Hussein Mwinyi emphasized the importance of public-private sector collaboration in promoting investment when he launched the Zanzibar Investment Guide in March of this year.

He said his administration will continue to work closely with various stakeholders to enhance the business environment and improve investment conditions in Zanzibar.

The Director General of Zanzibar’s E-Government Agency, Mr Said Seif Said, said NMB was not only the right lender to bank with but also the right partner in Zanzibar’s quest to become a digital economy.