Kampala, Uganda — The World Bank has stopped funding a tourism project in Tanzania that has caused suffering to tens of thousands of villagers, according to a US-based rights group that has long urged the bank to take such action.
The Auckland Institute said in a statement on Tuesday that the World Bank's decision to cancel a $150 million project aimed at improving the management of natural resources and tourism assets in remote areas of southern Tanzania was “long overdue”. , blamed the bank. “The failure to take immediate action has caused serious harm to the community.”
At least $100 million has already been paid for the project, which began in 2017. The World Bank lending suspension took effect on April 18th.
The Oakland Institute, a California-based human rights watchdog focused on marginalized communities, is working on a project known by the acronym “REGROW” to document the severe rights violations suffered by indigenous communities in the region. For many years, he led calls for the World Bank to stop funding the World Bank.
In a report released in November, the group accused the World Bank of failing to hold Tanzanian authorities accountable for extrajudicial killings and sexual assaults related to the expansion of Ruaha National Park.
The report said the Tanzanian government's tactics to forcibly remove communities and increase tourism to Ruaha National Park, the goals of the REGROW project, were “inextricably linked to World Bank financing.”
The World Bank said at the time that it had “zero tolerance for violence in the projects it finances” and that inspectors were reviewing complaints related to REGROW “to determine whether a compliance audit of the concerns raised is warranted.” He added that there is.
In a recent exchange between the World Bank and the Oakland Institute seen by The Associated Press, the financial institution said it would block further spending on REGROW “until it is satisfied that the project complies with environmental and social standards.” I agreed to stop.
Auckland Institute executive director Anuradha Mittal said the World Bank's decision to end funding for “risky projects” was a victory for East Africa's marginalized communities.
“This sends a resounding message to the Tanzanian government that rampant rights violations in various parts of the country aimed at promoting tourism are having some impact,” Mittal said. “The era of impunity is finally over.”
No comment was immediately available from Tanzanian authorities.
The Oakland Institute recorded at least 12 disappearances or extrajudicial killings allegedly carried out by rangers, as well as multiple sexual assaults against women. Government agencies are said to have seized and auctioned large numbers of cattle, placing significant financial strain on the herders in order to pressure them to leave.
“During the first months of 2024, rangers illegally seized and auctioned thousands of cattle from herders, while preventing farmers from cultivating their land,” the agency said in a statement on Tuesday. It has destroyed countless livelihoods.”
Tanzania relies heavily on tourism for its budget and has long sought to develop its vast national parks to attract more tourists.
Tens of thousands of communities in other parts of Tanzania have also been drawn into the effort, drawing attention from local authorities for abuses of civilians. These efforts, cited by Amnesty International and others, included the violent eviction of 70,000 Maasai from their grazing lands in the Loriondo region to clear large tracts of land for trophy hunting. There is.
