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Investment & Legal Framework
d.
The 1999 investment Act as amended in 2007,
is the legal base for investment that gives it ease
in procedure and flexibility in the handling of invest-
ment affairs. This encourages investment in pro-
jects that lead to the domestic income and expan-
sion of the national economic base and realization
of economic and social goal, particularly in the rural
areas. Such projects should also care for the eco-
logical balance and emphasize the utilization of lo-
cal raw materials such as inputs for their products,
especially the ones that uses new and renewable
energy sources and lead to greater co-operation
and integration amongst Islamic, Arab, African and
friendly countries.
The 1999 Investment Act, has also encouraged
investment in the agricultural, the industrial, the
mining, transport, tourism, warehousing, housing,
contracting and basic services sectors for national,
Arab and foreign private sectors besides the co-op-
erative, joint-venture and public sectors without any
bias or favoritism. The Investment Act also grants
the investors additional privileges and facilities if
their projects are among those that realize the ob-
jectives of the development plans.
Some of these facilities are the following:
1.
Exemption from business profit taxes for a period
not exceeding five years, as effective the year that
follows commercial production or commencement
of activities for strategic projects, and extendable
for another similar period.
2.
Reduction on tax and export duties for the fin-
ished and semifinished products of the project in
question. There shall also be further duties and tax-
cuts during the tax-exemption period.
3.
Total or partial exemption from customs and ex-
cise or any other duties pertaining to imports re-
lated to the project’s requirements.
4.
Projects that involve food security, investments
in the less developed areas, housing, medicinal or
clothing securities, promotion of export capabilities;
generate more work vacancies and help in redis-
tribution of wealth, provide local alternatives for
the basic imports or that depend on local raw ma-
terials for their inputs, projects that re-invest their
profits and projects that invest in the mining sec-
tor; all such projects shall be granted preferential
privileges.
The 1999 Investment Act also grants your project
the following benefits:
1.
Foreign capital proprietors may transfer their
profits and initial financing costs or debts provided
that all the legally-binding commitments pertaining
to the project are met and settled. The back-trans-
fer shall be in the original currency or currencies the
capital was transacted in.
2.
Import of raw materials for the sake of the pro-
ject during the tax exemption period without being
restricted by the procedures of importers -exporters
registrars.
3.
Transfer of expatriates’ savings, or those working
for the project in accordance with the acts imposed
in such cases.
4.
Freedom of movement, residence or transfer of
the project’s expatriate employees is guaranteed in
accordance with the prevailing laws.
Some of the most significant guarantees that the
1999 Investment Act grants the investor:
That the investor’s project shall not be liable to na-
tionalization or confiscation.
1.
That the project’s funds shall not be detained,
seized, freezed, confiscated, provisionally seized or
sequestrated unless there is a warrant issued by a
court for taking such a step.
2.
That any estates owned by the project shall not
be expropriated whether in whole or partially except
for the common cause in accordance with the law.
In such case, the investor shall be justly compen-
sated on basis of the market price of the estate at
time of expropriation.
3.
Remittance of invested capital in its currency
or currencies of origin in case the project has not
started, or in case the project got liquidated or dis-
posed of wholly or partially, provided that all legally-
binding commitments were met.
4.
As Sudan is one of the signatories to several in-
ternational and regional organizations concerned
with investment disputes, this factor can also be
added to the assurities and guarantees provided.
For instance Sudan is a signatory to:
The 1980 Unified agreement on Investment of
Arab capitals, the 1974 agreement on Settlement
of Investment Disputes Arising Between Host Arab
States and Nationals of Other Arab countries, the
1965 Agreement on Settlement of Investment Dis-
putes Between Host States and Nationals of other
countries, the 1977 General Agreement on Eco-
nomic, Technical and Trade Among Member States
of Organization of Islamic Conference, or any other