Tanzania rejects damning World Bank report

Tanzania has dismissed as ‘unfounded’ allegations of killings, rapes and the planned evictions of over 20 000 people that led the World Bank to suspend funding for a $150m conservation project. The Resilient Natural Resource Management for Tourism and Growth Project (Regrow) was launched to improve the management of natural resources and tourism assets in southern Tanzania. Fin24 reports that at least $100m has been disbursed for the project, which was launched in 2017. However, the Oakland Institute, a California-based think tank, raised allegations in September of forced evictions and rights abuses, including killing and sexual assaults of communities living near Ruaha national park, which the government is planning to expand as part of the scheme. ‘Park rangers, funded through Regrow, are implicated in murders of several villagers and numerous incidents of violence since the project began in 2017. Field research collected heart wrenching testimonies from those who have faced sexual violence, brutal assaults, and inhumane treatment by rangers,’ it said, adding that government agencies are also seizing and auctioning cattle in large numbers.

However, government spokesman Mobhare Matinyi said Tanzania ‘does not violate human rights in any development project’. ‘We are seriously concerned about people's rights and dignity. Our preliminary investigations have revealed that the allegations are not true. We are now waiting for our colleagues at the World Bank to supply their proof on the subject,’ he said. Fin24 notes that Tanzania’s tourism sector generated $3.37bn in revenue in 2023 as international arrivals rebounded by 24% to 1.8m.

Full Fin24 report