'Probe the use of aid funds'
2005-06-02 14:07
Cape Town - With Africa expecting $25bn by 2010 if the Commission for Africa's recommendations are implemented, Tanzania's President Benjamin Mkapa said each country should be assessed individually to see if previous aid funds were misused.
"I really must insist we should go country by country, situation by situation and see where it has been misused, where it can be better used," Mkapa told delegates at the World Economic Forum's Africa economic summit in Cape Town on Thursday.
Mkapa was part of a panel, including Finance Minister Trevor Manuel, which spoke on how new aid could be allocated and used effectively, and what sort of partnerships were needed to increase the capacity of countries to use aid effectively.
He said Africa has made a case for increased aid. The common impression that funds were misappropriated and misused was not altogether true.
Some used aid 'pretty well'
While some states lacked the necessary legal and administrative systems to use aid properly, others had done "pretty well" with their aid in uplifting their countries.
Mkapa, using his home country as an example, said the best aid he had received recently was to qualify for the highly-indebted poor countries initiative.
"On the strength of that qualification we've been able to absorb (save) an average of $80m a year. We have expanded the education system absolutely wonderfully, we have improved the health delivery system in terms of medicines and medical training and infrastructure development."
Mkapa said a short burst of aid, as envisaged by the Commission for Africa report which recommended a doubling of aid by 2010, would certainly help.
"If $80m a year, which was a quick short injection has made this kind of difference, can you imagine what $160m a year would do?"
Tips from Trevor
Asked about the commitment of donor countries to implement the Commission of Africa's recommendations, Manuel emphasised the need for "mutual accountability".
"If we're asking of President Mkapa to deliver on the Millennium Development Goals then by the same token the donors who made commitments together with him in the United Nations should be asked to account for their inaction or action."
Manuel said among the proposals by the commission was to maximise predictability and co-ordination between donors, to ensure adequate reporting and that aid should not be "tied".
"We can't approach this now as an all-or-nothing. We must be able to leverage maximally from every country and ensure we can place the onus on the governments in poor countries to be able to deliver on their commitments to their electorates, and ensure that we can take this campaign forward," Manuel said.
- SAPA