Support Program for Economic and Enterprise Development Plus (SPEED+)
USAID’s Supporting the Policy Environment for Economic Development (SPEED+) project will provide expert technical services to the Government of Mozambique to support economic and structural reform in the areas of agriculture, trade, business enabling environment, energy, water and biodiversity conservation. It will also promote the areas of improved fiscal transparency, tax policy and economic and environmental governance. SPEED+ will provide expert technical assistance and training for public sector institutions and civil society organizations at the national and local levels. It will support global initiatives such as Feed the Future, the G8 New Alliance for Food Security and Nutrition, Trade Africa, Power Africa, the USAID Biodiversity Policy, and the President’s Strategy to Combat Wildlife Trafficking.
Activity Description
SPEED + will:
- Provide independent, high-quality analysis and policy options and work with a network of policy influencers to promote informed decisions.
- Improve public-private dialogue through targeted conferences and meetings that engage new voices, such as the Young Parliamentarians organization, and supporting local think tanks.
- Work with local partners to build awareness and public support for policy reforms using traditional and social media as well as awareness-raising events.
- Build capacity to enforce conservation laws and support ecotourism activities that help to incentivize biodiversity conservation.
- Develop scorecards to monitor reform, using the SPEED+ website and an online application to survey experts and rate progress on policy recommendations.
Following on the heels of strong progress in 2014 and early 2015 to draft both a Cabinet decree and implementing regulations in close coordination with the government and the private sector, SPEED+ will support, the Government of the Republic of Mozambique (GRM) to roll out newly drafted regulations governing the private provision of water in Maputo and environs. The GRM plans to roll out these regulations nation-wide.
Expected Outcomes
- SPEED + expects to: Reduce the cost of doing business;
- Enhance Mozambique’s competitiveness;
- Create local opportunities for job and income growth;
- Improve the business environment in trade and investment.
Actual Outcomes
SPEED supported key reforms such as insolvency laws and streamlining of licensing and registration procedures to facilitate payment of taxes and registration of businesses, resulting in Mozambique rising 22 places in the World Bank’s Doing Business rankings from 2013-2015.
SPEED provided institutional support and capacity building to a wide range of public and private partners, including the Ministries of Industry & Trade, Agriculture, Tourism, Finance, and Justice, with capacity-building and outreach activities reaching 8,362 people, 1,750 of which were women.
SPEED partnered with Soico and the Confederation of Economic Associations on the Agro.Biz project to promote involvement in agribusiness, producing 32 short documentaries, more than 50 pages of print articles, and 11 televised debates discussing the importance of the agricultural sector to Mozambique’s economy.
SPEED made significant progress on 96 reform policies, regulations, or administrative procedures, ranging from macroeconomic and trade policy to sectoral competitiveness in agriculture and tourism.
Developed a comprehensive guide to the implementation of Mozambique’s land legislation and trained Ministry of Agriculture staff in the use of the guide how to train colleagues on its content.
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