AfDB to the rescue once again

WITH the government struggling with the management of public finances, including runaway corruption and failure to honour obligations such as civil servants salaries, the African Development Bank (AfDB) has moved in to fund the building of capacity to enhance institutional transparency.

Source: AfDB to the rescue once again – NewsDay Zimbabwe February 4, 2017

BY MUNESU NYAKUDYA

The AfDB has provided the Zimbabwean government, through the Finance ministry, with six grants amounting to $53,4 million, comprising of $4 158 000 for the youth and tourism enhancement project, $1 335 200 for the transport sector master plan study, $8 008 000 for governance and institutional strengthening project, $15 420 000 for emergency power infrastructure rehabilitation project phase II, stage 1, $4 160 000 for the emergency power infrastructure rehabilitation project phase I and $19 840 000 for the urgent water supply and sanitation rehabilitation project.

In a statement yesterday, Treasury said: “The youth and tourism enhancement project aims to reduce poverty and youth unemployment by giving the government greater financial latitude for developing tourism and youth services, particularly small and medium-sized businesses that are run by youths in Zimbabwe’s 10 provinces.”

The statement said the governance and institutional strengthening project aims at improving transparency and effectiveness in public finance and economic management; to contribute to economic recovery and service delivery.

A bloated wage bill has turned into government’s Achilles heel, as it searches for strategies to turn around a moribund economy that has remained stuck in the doldrums due to lack of fiscal prudence.

The transport sector master plan study aims at giving the government a comprehensive national transport sector master plan within a strategic framework and an investment plan to develop its transport infrastructure and associated services in a sustainable way.

“The proposed national transport master plan study is designed within the context of the newly launched national transport policy and in line with the Zimbabwe Agenda for Socio-Economic Transformation (ZimAsset 2013-2018),” the statement read.

The emergency power infrastructure rehabilitation project phase I and phase II, stage I aims to rehabilitate power transmission and distribution facilities throughout the country, as well as the Ash Handling Plant at Hwange Power Station.

“This should bring about improved environmental management and ash handling at Hwange Power Station, more reliable sub-transmission and distribution networks, and better electricity supply to the water treatment plants of Harare and elsewhere,” Treasury said.

Harare’s dilapidated water infrastructure is set to benefit from the urgent water supply and sanitation rehabilitation project.