OFFICIAL DEVELOPMENT ASSISTANCE PROFILE East Africa Region MARCH 2017 Introduc on This profile gives an analysis of the trends in ODA for the East African region ODA is classified as by the OECD/DAC as flows to countries and territories on the DAC List of ODA Recipients and to mul lateral ins tu ons which are provided by official agencies, including state and local governments, or by their execu ve agencies; and each transac on of which is administered with the promo on of the economic development and welfare of developing countries as its main objec ve; and is concessional in character and conveys a grant element of at least 25 per cent (calculated at a rate of discount of 10 per cent). It begins by cataloguing the trends in ODA to the East Region. It brings to the fore average Net ODA Received Per Capita of these countries and also draws conclusions on these countries average ODA % of GNI East Africa. The trends in ODA will be from the period 2010 to 2014. It is concluded by policy recommenda ons. East Africa is composed of 14 countries (Burundi, Comoros, Democra c Republic of Congo, Djibou, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Kenya, Madagascar, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Mauri us and Seychelles) according to the United Na ons economic Commission for Africa and the African Union Commission. The regional economic communi es in this region are East African Community (EAC), the common market of Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) and the intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD). The large parts of East Africa remain trapped in extreme poverty. On average 34.6% of the popula on in East Africa live on less than $1.90 a day according to figures from their last survey years. However the figures vary at country level. The regional average overall balance for Total revenue and grants and total expenditure and net lending is at -4.3%. Governments in this region therefore do not have adequate resources to meet their recurring expenditures to run government. It is these cri cal sectors that suffer the most as health, educa on, wa ter and sanita on. However there have been ODA inflows into the region as Figure 1 below depicts. Official Development Assistance trends Figure 1 Trend in ODA to the East Region (US Billion) 20 15 10 5 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 Source: Calcula ons based on World Bank Figures 2016 Data from 2010 to 2014 indicates that ODA to the East region rose from US$ 14.2 Billion in 2010 to US$18.3 Billion in 2013 then went down again in 2014 to US$6.603. In terms of net ODA received 7 Countries classified using United Na ons Economic commission for Africa Commission classifica ons 1
Ethiopia received the most as compared to other Eastern countries. The country received US$17.6billion worth of ODA during the period under review. Tanzania is the second biggest recipient of ODA reaching US$14.3billion during the period under review. However ODA is substan ve in the Rwanda context given its share as a percentage of Gross Na onal Inc ome. Seychelles and Comoros receive the least ODA in the region. In Africa Ethiopia is the largest recipient of ODA, cons tu ng 7% of the total disbursements in 2014. In the same year Kenya was the 3 rd largest recipient in cons tu ng 5% with Tanzania, South Sudan and Uganda also in the top ten. Democra c Republic of Congo is the fi h largest recipient of ODA that cons tuted 5% of the total disbursements in 2014 for Africa 8. In average terms, the country was the top recipient of ODA between 2011 and 2013 receiving 7% of all receipts in Africa. Hence in 2014 the East region received more ODA than any other region in Africa. The reduc on in ODA in 2014 resulted in all Eastern region countries receiving lesser ODA than they normally received as Table 2 below depicts. Table 2: Average Net ODA Received Per Capita US$ Source: Compiled by author from World Bank sta s cs 2016 Net ODA Received Per Capita: Net official development assistance (ODA) per capita brings to the fore the adequacy of the ODA provided to the countries under review and the region in totality. During the period under review the average ODA per capita was a mere US$92.4. The average figure for 2010 as table 4 depicts was US$107.89. For this region ODA per capita depicts inadequacy of resources from Aid. In a region that average poverty as per the last survey on poverty datum line of US$1.9 was at 34%, this trend is not desirable. In 2011, ODA per capita stood at US$82.10 which rose to US$97.63 in 2012 and by 2014 it had gone to its lowest levels of the period under review of US$80. At country level the figures depict the same story for most of the countries. Over the period under review Seychelles and Djibou have received the most ODA per capita in the region. For Seychelles the highest figures were recorded in 2010 when aid per capita picked to 8 h ps://www.oecd.org/dac/stats/documentupload/2%20africa%20- %20Development%20Aid%20at%20a%20Glance%202015.pdf 2
$624.26 before dropping in 2014 to $49.12. However as figure 3 depict Seychelles is not among the top 3 recipients of ODA in the Eastern region yet it has the highest per capita figures. Madagascar received the least ODA per capita which averaged $21.25 during the period under review yet it has 81.8% of its popula on living below the poverty datum line. Another country with the highest number of people living below the poverty datum line is Rwanda of 60.3% has received an average of $98.05 per capita during the period under review. This depicts that ODA is not chann elled were it is needed the most by the OECD. Table 3: Average ODA % of GNI East Africa US$ Source: Compiled from World Bank sta s cs 2016 Average ODA as a percentage of GNI is defined as the total ODA given or received as a share of GNI of the source or recipient country, respec vely, net of repayment of principal. In 2010 East Africa recorded the highest figure of 11.82% GNI and the following year the figures dropped to 8.64%GNI in 2011. In 2012 the value for the region further reduced to 8.53%GNI being the lowest figure for the period under review. In 2013 and 2014 the figures went slightly up to 9.87% GNI and 9.07% GNI respec vely. On the overall this trend is depic ng that ODA is not the most important source that is financing development in this region. Comparison of ODA as a percentage of GNI in the countries under review shows that Rwanda and Comoros depends more on ODA than any other countries. However the trend for Uganda depicts a deprecia ng value in ODA as a percentage of GNI. During the period under review it decreased from 8.51% in 2010 to 6.19% in 2014. In South Sudan, ODA to GNI climbed up from 3.81% in 2010 to a pick of 16.61% in 2014. In the Democra c Republic of Congo the value of ODA has been going down over the years. It depreciated from its peak of 24.5% in 2011 to a low of 8.06% GNI in 2014. Mauri us, Seychelles and Sudan have the lowest figures of ODA to GNI. This depicts that ODA is not the most important source as a component of GNI and that also mean less dependence on ODA. No Data is provided for Djibou. Policy recommenda ons Governments in East Africa should focus more on enhancing their capaci es for domes c resource mobilisa on. The trend of ODA as a percentage of GNI depicts a diminishing value of ODA in all the countries. These suggest that in East Africa ODA is become less and less significant in GNI terms. However ODA should con nue to be used effec vely and efficiently. The recently finalised Nairobi Outcome document of December 2016 reiterated the con nued implementa on of the Busan four principles of development effec veness that is country ownership of development priori es by 3
partner countries; focus on results; inclusive development partnerships; and transparency and mutual accountability. These should con nue to inform policy on Aid management in these countries. The decline in the magnitude of ODA in GNI terms should not undermine the countries efforts towards implemen ng development effec veness principles. Trends depict that the resources provided by Official development assistance have been going down during the period under review. Countries in the region have to use other sources to finance development by taking measures that will enhance their tax bases. Ethiopia, Comoros and Rwanda have the highest figures in terms of ODA as a percentage of GNI. This depicts the importance of ODA in these countries. ODA that supports the effec ve mobilisa on and use of domes c resources will be an important part of development coopera on. However with the trends in which domes c resource mobilisa on is now viewed as the most viable op on for financing development projects, these countries should now focus more on ensuring that ODA is used to enhance domes c resource mobilisa on. ODA should now play a more cataly c role. The DRC by virtue of it being endowed with the most natural resources in this region should u lise these resources for self sustenance. More ODA should be provided towards countries that are regarded as non resource rich countries such as Comoros, Djibou, Ethiopia and Seychelles. Countries classified as low middle income countries should use their ODA to enhance their domes c resource mobilisa on through improving their tax administra on systems. Even though half of the countries in this region are endowed with natural resources, ODA remains a cri cal development finance op on that they will con nue to explore. ODA should now be viewed as a catalyst for development. Donors should follow the Aid effec veness principles as they deliver their aid. The DRC, by virtue of it being endowed with the most natural resources in this region, should u lise these resources for self sustenance. Tables Net official development assistance and official aid received (current US$) 2016 6,000,000,000 5,000,000,000 4,000,000,000 3,000,000,000 2,000,000,000 1,000,000,000 - Burundi Comoros D.R. Congo Djibou Ethiopia Eritrea Kenya Madagascar Rwanda Seychelles Somalia South Sudan Tanzania Uganda 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 4
Net ODA received per Capita (current US$) 2016 700.00 600.00 500.00 400.00 2010 300.00 2011 200.00 2012 2013 100.00 2014 Net ODA % GNI Source: World Bank 5 Uganda Tanzania South Sudan Somalia Seychelles Rwanda Madagascar Kenya Eritrea Ethiopia Djibou D.R. Congo Comoros Burundi 0.00
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