Development
Assisting poor communities in Tanzania

afrol.com, 23 August  - The World Bank approved today a US$ 60 million credit to support the government of Tanzania in its efforts to help poor communities improve and sustain socio-economic services and opportunities. The Tanzania Social Action Fund Project aims to reduce the devastating effects of poverty by providing opportunities for communities to participate in and take charge of key decision-making processes at the local level. 

The project will improve the socio-economic infrastructure, enhancing capacity and skills among rural and peri-urban communities, while creating a temporary safety net for the poorest communities. The project activities are designed to improve basic services and protect vulnerable groups through:

· Community Development Initiatives. This component will finance and support small demand-based community initiatives in the social sectors that improve the access to and delivery of social and economic services such as health centers, school buildings, shallow wells, crop storage facilities and markets. Specific attention will also be given to HIV/AIDS prevention programs;

· Public Works Program. The objective of the component is to provide cash income for the poor, especially women and youth, and particularly during periods of seasonal food shortage. This will be done through the promotion of job creation related to the construction and rehabilitation of infrastructure facilities;

· Institutional Development. This component will focus on ensuring that day-to-day operational support is provided for all project activities including an Information, Education and Communications (IEC) campaign and monitoring and evaluation.

The project will also complement the government's ongoing efforts to decentralize to the local governments and provide a framework to institutionalize community-driven development planning.

"Tanzania has launched its economic reform program and this project will help the government cushion the impact of the ongoing reforms on poorer communities, ensure that their urgent social needs are met, and build their capacity to prioritize and implement community programs," said Norbert Mugwagwa, project team leader.

Recent poverty data indicate that about half of all Tanzanians live in poor households where each person earns less than $1 a day. Poverty is particularly widespread in the country side: almost 61 percent of the rural population is poor compared to 39 percent of the urban population.

The Tanzania Social Action Fund Project will be financed by a US$ 60 million credit from the International Development Association, the World Bank's lending arm for the poorest countries. The IDA credit is on standard terms of 40 years maturity, including 10 years grace.

Source: World Bank

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