MKULO DISMISSES DUTCH AID THREAT
By Mkinga Mkinga
The Citizen Daily
2009-07-06 08:39:00
Finance and Economic Affairs minister Mustafa Mkulo has played down
the Dutch Government’s intention to suspend aid to Tanzania. A Dutch
minister was infuriated by "mistreatment" of his countryman who is
involved in a timber business and asked his Parliament to suspend aid.
Mr Mkulo toldo The Citizen yesterday it was unfortunate that the
country was basing its case on events involving only one businessman.
He said the Government had formally been informed of the Netherlands’
decision and that several consultation meetings were held on the
issue with no amicable agreement.
Dutch Development minister Bert Koenders wrote to the Lower House in
his country, explaining that Tanzania was an unreliable partner for
foreign investors. The minister took the decision after an unnamed
Dutch businessman lost his investment in Tanzania.
However, the letter neither names the businessman nor gives details
of the case, but the minister said "enough is enough". The bilateral
budget for Tanzania for 2009 is 81 million euros (Sh148.2 billion).
This consists of 30 million euros for general budget support, 21
million euros for health care (including the programme for combating
HIV/Aids), 18 million euros for good governance (decentralisation),
10 million euros for drinking water and sanitation and 1.1 million
euros for improving the business climate.
The Netherlands’ aid in 2008 totalled 69.7 million euros (Sh127.5
billion according to current exchange rates). The aid was directed
towards health care, local government and private sector development.
Mr Mkulo told The Citizen yesterday that there was a Dutch businessman
who wanted to be given special treatment.
"The Dutch was engaged in logging business, he was conducting his
business from Mkumbara. He was a private businessman but there was
a lot of interventions by his embassy," Mr Mkulo said.
He said the businessman had sought to meet Prime Minister Mizengo
Pinda in his quest to be given special treatment in his business. But
he was asked to contact Natural Resources and Tourism minister Shamsa
Mwangunga instead.
When the businessman met the minister, he was directed to conduct his
business in accordance with the laws and regulations, but he refused
and forwarded the matter to his embassy.
"But it is diplomatically understood across the world that there
is no country which is allowed to intervene in internal affairs of
another country.
If, for instance UK sets its own regulation to remove hawkers in
London, Tanzania cannot intervene simply because Tanzania hawkers are
going to be affected… it is against the Geneva Convention,"explained
Mr Mkulo without naming the businessman.
He said he had met the Dutch envoy and discussed the matter without
knowledge that the businessman had gone to the Prime Minister on the
same matter. Mr Mkulo referred this paper to Ms Mwangunga for further
clarification but her phone was switched off.
The permanent secretary in the Ministry of Tourism and Natural
Resources, Dr Ladislaus Komba, said he was unaware of the issue. But
Tanzania is not the only country which has suffered Dutch aid freeze.
Mr Koenders named other countries which will miss aid from the
Netherlands as Bosnia-Herzegovina, Albania, Armenia and Macedonia
because they were receiving more funds from other sources.
Also affected are Eritrea and Sri Lanka for political turmoil, while
Cape Verde will also miss Dutch aid on the grounds that its economy
was performing well, the minister said in his letter.
The Netherlands each year spends 0.8 per cent of its gross domestic
product on fight ingpoverty with half of the aid going to Africa.
In 36 countries it supports, the money is spent on improving
governance, human rights and business opportunities.