Danish govt withdraws bilateral aid to Zambia
Danish govt withdraws bilateral aid to ZambiaBy Masuzyo Chakwe
Sat 22 Jan. 2011, 04:00 CAT
DENMARK has cut bilateral aid to Zambia. According to the Danish Embassy in Lusaka yesterday, a decision had been taken to reduce the number of Danish partner countries from 26 to 15.
The embassy stated that other countries affected include Benin, Bolivia, Cambodia, Nicaragua and Vietnam.
It stated that the phasing out of Danish bilateral aid to Zambia would be undertaken in such a way that all commitments would be honored and good results achieved would not be lost.
“The period of phasing out is foreseen to be concluded by end of 2013 with some activities being completed before as they have been scheduled. The phasing out of individual activities will be done in close cooperation and dialogue with the relevant partner organisations,” the embassy stated.
It stated that there were no plans to close the embassy and diplomatic relations would continue.
According to the embassy, the Danish government had decided to focus the bilateral aid with a view to increasing efficiency and creating space for new priorities in international aid.
The embassy stated that the global financial crisis and consequent pressure on aid funding had added to the need of focusing the resources available, hence the decision to cut bilateral aid to some countries.
The embassy stated that Denmark had cooperated with Zambia for more than 45 years and the volume of bilateral aid had been growing steadily and numerous visible results achieved.
It stated that in sectors like infrastructure, education, justice and environment, it was believed that Danish aid had contributed positively to development.
The embassy stated that Denmark accounted for 3.5 per cent of international aid to Zambia.
According to the embassy, Zambia had undergone very positive economic development over the past two decades and recent economic reports predicted that it would be among the fastest growing economies even beyond Africa.
“Zambian potential for even further growth through exploitation of resources in agriculture, mining, energy is there and its dependence on foreign aid is significantly reduced,” stated the embassy.
posted by MrK @ 3:51 AM
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