The World Bank may suspend funding to Tanzania after expressing concerns about new legislation which would punish anyone who questions official statistics. Tanzania is a country in eastern Africa within the African Great Lakes region. The United Nations estimated Tanzania’s 2016…
The World Bank may suspend funding to Tanzania after expressing concerns about new legislation which would punish anyone who questions official statistics.
Background
Tanzania is a country in eastern Africa within the African Great Lakes region. The United Nations estimated Tanzania’s 2016 population at 55.57 million. The population is composed of several ethnic, linguistic, and religious groups. The sovereign state of Tanzania is a presidential constitutional republic and since 1996 its official capital city has been Dodoma where the president’s office, the National Assembly, and some government ministries are located.
As of 2018, according to the IMF, Tanzania’s gross domestic product (GDP) was an estimated $56.7 billion (nominal), or $176.5 billion on a purchasing power parity (PPP) basis. GDP per capita (PPP) was $3,457.
From 2009 through 2013, Tanzania’s per capita GDP (based on constant local currency) grew an average of 3.5% per year, higher than any other member of the East African Community (EAC) and exceeded by only nine countries in Sub-Saharan Africa: the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Ghana, Lesotho, Liberia, Mozambique, Sierra Leone, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
According to the United Nations Development Program, however, the recent growth in the national economy has benefited only the “very few”, leaving out the majority of the population.
Analysis
The global lending institution says the law would undermine the production of useful and high-quality data.
Lawmakers last month passed amendments to the Statistics Act that would impose fines, at least three years jail time, or both, on anyone who questioned the accuracy of official figures.
The attorney general said the changes were needed to enforce standards. Under the amendments, people who question the accuracy of official statistics will face a fine of at least 10 million Tanzanian Shillings ($4,370), at least three years in jail, or both.
Opposition groups and other critics have said the changes were part of a broader government crackdown on dissent and criticism of its political and economic record – a charge dismissed by authorities.
The World Bank said the changes to the law – which still have to be approved by President John Magufuli, were “out of line with international standards”.
“We have shared our concerns with the Tanzanian authorities that the amendments, if implemented, could have serious impacts on the generation and use of official and non-official statistics, which are a vital foundation for the country’s development,” the Washington-based lender said late on Tuesday.
The World Bank said was talking to authorities about whether it would continue supporting a programme to produce systems to create “reliable and timely statistics”.
Local news portal, The Citizen said the permanent secretary in the ministry of finance, Dr. Doto James is not aware of funding by the World Bank towards statistical projects.
‘‘The government has neither requested nor embarked on a process to ask for a $50 million loan from the World Bank for use by the National Bureau of Statistics,” said Doto.
‘‘As permanent secretary, I can confirm that we have never written to the World Bank asking for money.”
Local businessmen and foreign investors have said economic activity in the country has dramatically slowed since Magufuli took office in 2015 pledging to limit foreign ownership in critical sectors such as mining.
The government denies that it is trying to curb dissent and argues that corruption has robbed Tanzania of profits from its resources for years.
The finance ministry forecast in June that the economy will grow by 7.2 percent in 2018, up from around 7.1 percent last year.
Assessment
Our assessment is that the world bank’s refusal to continue providing support to Tanzania is a serious challenge to the country’s fiscal stability. The new legislation clearly targets critics of the government, which further reduces the government’s credibility as there are higher chances that the Finance ministry could fabricate economic data. We feel that increased pressure of the World Bank in refusing support may force the Tanzanian government to reconsider the new controversial law.
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