From: barnhart@gagme.chi.il.us (Aaron Barnhart)
Subject: IPS: AFRICA: Germany told the do's and d
Originator: barnhart@gagme
Organization: Gagme Public Access UNIX, Chicago, Illinois.
Date: Fri, 21 Aug 1992 22:33:59 GMT

Title: AFRICA: Germany told the do's and don'ts of 'democracy bonus'


an inter press service feature

by ramesh jaura

bonn, aug 17 (ips) -- as long as africa continues to labour under
its debt burden, german talk of 'bonus' aid for countries taking
to democracy and socially-aware free market economies is premature
and impractical, say african and german analysts.

german economic cooperation minister carl-dieter spranger
proposed the aid bonuses for developing nations in general and the
states of the sub-saharan africa in particular, last thursday.

but lukas mbae, a bonn-based african development analyst said
that the international economic climate in which africa has to
operate blocked economic and political development.

''the debt overhang is the single major obstacle to development
in the continent,'' he adds. and, the situation has changed little
since 1990 when the debt service bill of 25 billion dollars was
higher than the total aid received by africa in 1989, which
amounted to a sheer 21 billion dollars.

''with a ratio of external debt to 1989 exports of 362 percent,
the solution to this major problem clearly lies beyond africa's
control,'' argues mbae.

''against this backdrop,'' says lesotho ambassador r. m.
tekateka, ''there is an urgent need for international action to
apply a new strategy to the external debt problem''.

such a strategy should apply as much to debt owed to multilateral
institutions -- to whom most of africa is obliged for its
borrowings -- as to bilateral credits, he adds. tekateka feels
encouraged that there is ''some understanding of this problem
among africa's friends''.

since 1978, for instance, germany alone has written off a total
of nine billion marks (6.2 billion dollars) in debts from
developing countries. of that amount, 6.6 billion marks (4.55
billion dollars) were from sub-saharan african countries.

''we are appreciative of this,'' said tekateka. ''what we are
saying, however, is that the situation has become desperate and
that africa simply cannot realise its development goals so long as
it is a net exporter of capital with little or nothing being
reinvested on the continent.'' (more/ips)

africa: germany told the do's and don'ts of 'democracy bonus'(2-e)

africa: germany told (2)

in his department's position paper on 'development cooperation
with countries south of the sahara in 1990s' spranger said the
'democracy bonus' should take the form of a package to ease the
sub-saharan african countries' debts to the west's private banks
and governments.

this will allow debtor nations to keep most of their export
earnings, instead of having to use them to service debt charges.

''this will be a welcome step,'' says holger baum, chair of the
'germanwatch', an independent non-governmental organisation (ngo).
''we are in favour of germany writing off all the debts africa
owes, 90 per cent of which are in any case inter-governmental.

''we also agree that special support -- call it a 'bonus' --
should be granted to countries committed to the respect of
fundamental human rights, participation by the people in the
political decision-making process, with due regard for their socio-
cultural heritage, the rule of law and a socially-aware market-
oriented economic order''.

the best way to achieve this is to channel larger funds to the
ngos so that spranger's proposed 'grants' for educational and
vocational training projects do not lead to the creation of
bureaucratic structures which african governments will not be able
to afford if funds from bonn dry up, adds baum.

another development analyst, walter michler, who chairs the 'pro
africa' initiative, welcomes that the paper refers to the terms of
trade -- including falling commodity prices -- as a major external
factor inhibiting development in sub-saharan africa.

''but awareness of obstacles alone will not suffice. germany must
exert all its weight so that africa gets help -- also in
diversifying its range of exports; and you cannot do that without
funds and the question of funding is being left to the private
sector in africa,'' notes michler. ''it's like a vicious circle.''

of the total german bilateral financial and technical assistance
amounting to about four billion marks (2.56 billion dollars) this
year, africa has a share of 40.2 percent in comparison to asia's
40 percent and latin america's 15.3 per cent.

michler notes that apart from a general commitment to ''improving
the quality and quantity'' of aid, no concrete figures are
mentioned in the position paper. in fact there are persistent
reports that there will be some cutbacks.

nearly 40 african states have in the past few years decided in
favour of democratisation and economic reforms but ''they have by
no means been giving a feeling that they are being rewarded,''
asserts michler. ''the black perestroika has been ignored for a
long time, just as they refused to take note of the inferno in the
making in somalia,'' he adds. (end/ips/cd/raj/rj/92)




-- 
Aaron (Barnhart@gagme.chi.il.us) -- posting from Evanston, Illinois
Newsgroups: soc.culture.african