Whenever oil is discovered in an African country – which happens more and more these days – a certain pattern unfolds. Vast sums of money start flowing in. Government officials divert much of it into their private bank accounts. And the masses are left nearly as poor as before – and are increasingly angry, the Christian Science Monitor reports, according to the World Bank press review Wednesday.
But this month, the nation of Chad embarked in earnest on a groundbreaking – some say foolhardy – effort, policed by the World Bank, to ensure that the benefits of the countrys new oil wealth reach its 9 million people.
This month, Chad got its first 38 million US dollar in oil revenues. Over the next 20 years, it is expected to get at least 2 billion dollar, boosting national revenues by 50 percent, according to the World Bank.
But unlike other African nations, Chad is committed to spend 80 percent of oil revenues on schools, clinics, roads, and other basic needs. Five percent goes to a fund for future generations. Another 5 percent goes to develop the southern oil region, near the Cameroon border. And 10 percent is socked away in case oil prices fall.
Most of the cash is held by the World Bank in a London account to avoid “leakage.” And a citizens committee, with four members from nonprofit groups and five from government, must approve all oil- revenue expenditures.
Already, villagers in the hamlet of Meurmeouel, in southern Chads scrub-brush desert, are reaping benefits. Pumps are sucking 200.000 barrels of oil a day from beneath Meurmeouel and nearby villages, and sending it via a 670-mile pipeline through Cameroon to world markets.
But even with its new bonanza, Chad will not be rich. Per capita income is 250 US dollar per year – or 73 cents a day – according to the World Bank. That is expected to rise to 550 dollar per year by 2005. Chad ranks 167th out of 177 countries on the 2004 United Nations Human Development Index. Electricity, paved roads, and clean water are rare.
And skeptics say that despite the new revenue model, life will not change much for the masses – only the elites. They worry the citizens committee will not be independent of the authoritarian regime and point out, for instance, that President Idriss Debys brother is on the panel.
But the World Bank, in a calculated gamble, figures Chads leaders would risk too much by trying to skim money for themselves. Even with oil revenues, Chad will still rely heavily on outside aid to fund even basic services.
– If they are going to renege on their commitment, it would jeopardize relations with the World Bank and other donors,” says Gregor Binkert, the World Bank country director in Ndjamena.
Kilde: www.worldbank.org
