NZ Companies Office promote private sector growth in the Pacific

Pacific Island delgates attended an Auckland workshop organised by the New Zealand Companies Office and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to develop and reform online/electronic business registries in the Pacific Islands, reports Islands Business. Pacific island governments and investors see reform as vital if the Pacific wants to ‘build a vibrant, efficient private sector, ‘ Islands Business quotes a Pacific delegate as saying. ‘The New Zealand Companies Office is a world leader in the use of information technology to enable online registries and is delighted to be part of this ongoing partnership with ADB, said Michael Brosnahan, Operations Manager, New Zealand Ministry of Business Innovation (MBIE). ‘Online registries reduce the time and costs associated with the “tyranny of distance”, and are transforming the way business being done in the region,’ says Brosnahan. The Companies Office and the ADB, are assisting with business registry development in the Solomon Islands, Samoa, Tonga Vanuatu, and other Pacific countries. “The development of online business registries in the Pacific will ultimately make it easier for people to conduct business in the region,” said Andrea Iffland, Regional Director of ADB‘s Pacific Liaison and Coordination Office. “We look forward to continuing our partnership with the New Zealand Companies Office to develop more business registries in the region,’ Iffland is quoted as saying. The workshop heard that business registries can reduce the cost of doing business, encourage compliance, and ensure fair trading and consumer protection, according to Islands Business.