US: No aid yet for Zimbabwe
2009-04-24 22:42
Special Report
A classical music presenter for the BBC has been arrested and is in custody in Zimbabwe.
Washington - Zimbabwe's finance
minister met with senior US diplomats on Friday, but the State
Department said this was no sign the United States is about to
open up the flow of aid to the economically ruined country.
Finance Minister Tendai Biti saw Under Secretary of State
William Burns and Mary Jo Wills, acting deputy assistant
secretary of state for African Affairs, as Washington weighs
whether Zimbabwe's new unity government has implemented enough
reforms for significant US aid to kick in.
"This meeting does not signal any kind of change. There are
a number of things we have to see yet," State Department
spokesperson Robert Wood told Reuters before the meeting.
"We want to see how the government is making progress on
democratic reforms, economic reforms and then we will make a
decision on whether we want to provide significant development
assistance," he added.
Wood said the US government wanted to get a sense of the
financial situation in Zimbabwe and steps the government is
taking to reverse the free fall of the economy. Biti was in
Washington for meetings of the IMF and World Bank.
Unemployment at 90%
Zimbabwe's economy is in ruins with hyperinflation and
unemployment at around 90%. Millions are in need of food
and the country's infrastructure and institutions in shambles.
In a message to the Zimbabwean people last weekend, US
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton commended the government for
progress in implementing reforms, but said more must be done.
US officials say there are no immediate plans either to
lift targeted US sanctions or give major aid until there is
firm evidence that President Robert Mugabe is serious about
sharing power with opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai.
The two formed a unity government in February following
bitter post-election feuding and a clampdown by Mugabe's forces
against the opposition.
Mugabe has blamed his country's economic collapse on
Western sanctions but the United States and others counter that
the cause of financial decline was his own mismanagement.
US officials have praised Biti personally for his efforts
so far but have strong criticism for the country's central bank
governor, a close ally of Mugabe.
The departure of the central bank governor would be seen as
a strong sign that Zimbabwe was serious about taking strong
measures to turn around the economy, said one official, who
declined to be named as his comments were sensitive.
- Reuters