By Jamie Prentis.
Tunis, 21 February 2016:
The creation of a free trade zone in Sebha has been discussed by officials from the town’s municipal council and the local division of the Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture.
A statement on the municipality’s Facebook page today said it could help prevent the illegal trading of cars in the south and stop the phenomenon of people-trafficking that is rife in the area around Sebha.
A free trade zone would, it was said, encourage the youth of Sebha to pursue legal ways of making money. The potential economic gains for the surrounding towns and districts were also acknowledged.
Whilst the municipal council insisted it would do all it could to create such a zone, the chamber noted still need approval from the government.
The only free trade zone in Libya at present is that at Misrata. It was created in 2006. The same year also saw the former regime also approve the creation of a free trade zone at Zuwara on the Tunisian border, but it never came to fruition although Tunisia says it plans one on its side of the frontier.
There have also been proposals for free trade zones in Benghazi and in the Bay of Bomba, betweem Derna and Tobruk. But they too remain on the drawing board.
Meanwhile, one of the country’s two main mobile service providers, Libyana Telecom, has announced it is to redevelop its network in southern Libya.
This will include the replacement and renovation of old equipment and the provision of new electricity generators to support service stations.
The director of Information Technology in the south western town of Ghurayfa, near Obari, relayed the information to pro-Presidency Council LANA News Agency.
In other southern development, Traghan, south of Sebha, has held a two-day round table meeting to find ways to end cooking gas shortages. Whilst last month’s crisis in Fezzan appears to be easing, problems still persist in some areas.
The Traghen discussions, attended by consumer associations and shop owners from Traghan and further afield, looked at the obstacles faced by locals in obtaining cooking gas.
Earlier this month, House of Representatives (HoR) members from the south formed a joint committee with local municipalities in order to improve services in Fezzan.
Yesterday, the members ended their boycott of the HoR over the apparent lack of interest in Fezzan and the dire economic situation facing residents, saying that matters had improved.
