From: barnhart@ddsw1.MCS.COM (Mr. Aaron Barnhart)
Subject: IPS:SOUTHERN AFRICA: Keeping friends among the international donors
Date: Sun, 13 Dec 1992 07:29:06 GMT
Organization: Evanston, Illinois, U.S.A.

Copyright Inter Press Service 1992, all rights reserved.  Permission to re-
print within 7 days of original date only with permission from 'newsdesk'.

Title: SOUTHERN AFRICA: Keeping friends among the international donors


brussels, dec 2 (ips) -- with development aid budgets under attack
around the world, donors turning to east europe and changes afoot
in south africa, the southern african development community (sadc)
is seeking to hold its own with international donors.

originally the southern african development co-operation
conference (sadcc) the body became the sadc this year with bigger
ambitions for its ten members -- botswana, zimbabwe, zambia,
tanzania, lesotho, mozambique, swaziland, angola and lately,
namibia -- but donor support is slacking.

''we certainly sense a diminution of focus in terms of
development coordination in southern africa,'' sadc's secretary-
general, simba makoni told journalists in brussels this week
during his annual tour of european community (ec) donor nations,
prior to sadc's annual conference jan. 27-29 in harare.

he noted cuts in the aid budgets of top donors like finland,
norway, sweden and the netherlands, and said that many donors were
not being ''altogether honest'' over falling contributions.

makoni put the fall in support down to a shift towards aid to
eastern europe and the confederation of independent states (cis).
but an ec spokesperson remarked that sadc had always and would
continue to be considered a very worthy regional group by the ec.

the then sadcc captured donor interest in the ec in the 1980's
partly with its political and developmental plan to lessen its
members' dependence on south african routes by renovating the
region's transport links. some ec states proudly publicised their
support for this plan, as an alternative to the pressure for
additional ec-wide trade sanctions against south africa.

under the lome iii convention, an ec trade and aid pact with the
african, caribbean and pacific (acp) states (1985-1990), the ec
pledged some 170 million dollars for the region. a lower figure
has been earmarked under a new lome pact (1990-95) with all
'southern africa' earmarked about 148 million dollars.

the bulk of this budget -- 35 percent -- is expected to be
disbursed on maintaining and building up transport networks
whereas 20 percent is earmarked for food security and 15 percent
for human resource development.

and in real terms drop in support is heavier, pointed out
makoni.   on the contrary sadc was looking for increased support
from the ec this time around.

it has one new member and it might also be forced to share part
of the southern african budget with the preferential trade area
whose priority is trade liberalisation, although the ec signed its
financial protocol for southern africa with sadc. (more/ips)

southern africa: keeping friends among the international donors(2-e)

southern africa: keeping friends (2)

makoni told journalists of new ambitions for the sadc which  call
for greater support. waiting to be ratified by all its members,
the new sadc treaty covers new areas of cooperation like exchange
of information and culture and well as more traditional areas like
food security and rural development, trade and industrial
development, human resources, environmental protection and
transport and communications.

and makoni looked forward to a period when a democratic south
africa could join the regional group.

but he contradicted the view that south africa would be the motor
for growth in the region. ''in the early years, south africa will
bring more problems than opportunities to the group,'' predicted
makoni.

but makoni also urged the ec not to discuss a cooperation
agreement with south africa, prior to the establishment of a
democratic south africa.

as for where lome iv funds might be spent this time around,
inside the three priority sectors, continued ec support is likely
for development of transport routes in southern africa.   with lome
iii funds, the ec supported the development of beira port, the dar
es salamm-nacala link and renovation of the limpopo rail route.

sadc is looking for support for the development of lobito port
and the benguela line, a project which can only get underway once
peace is established and benefiting namibia, the trans kalighari
link which will link it up with walvis bay.

with severe drought hitting all 10 sadc countries, a regional
project for crisis mobilisation of food stocks has been revived.
first considered two years ago when zimbabwe had a two million
tonne cereals surplus, world bank and international monetary fund
(imf) advisors held it up with demands for cuts in storage costs.

but the recent drought has increased the donor's support for the
scheme. a stock of around 350,000 tonnes, purchased locally from
another sadc country with a surplus or internationally, could be
established in a sadc state and mobilised in an emergency --
reducing time and costs involved in transporting emergency aid.

the sadc official admitted that there were problems with the
project -- from the ec as a result of the ongoing reform of its
agricultural policy -- and some sadc countries, who felt that some
sadc members would benefit more than others. the ec said it was
considering technical assistance to assess the project.

makoni however predicted that there would be a need for drought
recovery support; aid to purchase seeds and implements. predicted
requirements of the region's food needs and other support will be
known at the sadc conference, he said. (end/ips/cd/dp/rj/92)
Newsgroups: soc.culture.african