TANZANIA'S SELF-HELP FUNDING REQUEST FOR FY2006

UNCLAS DAR ES SALAAM 000164 SIPDIS DEPT AF/EPS FOR CAROL TRIMBLE AND AFR/DP/PAB E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: EAID TZ SUBJECT: TANZANIA'S SELF-HELP FUNDING REQUEST FOR FY2006 REF: STATE 01255 ¶1. Overall, the value of the Self-Help program in winning the hearts and minds of the Tanzanian public far exceeds our comparatively modest investment in this program. An increase in our Self-Help allocation is vital. Post's FY06 request is USD $150,000. ¶2. Tanzania's FY05 allocation of USD 70,000 enabled the Embassy to fund 12 Self-Help projects on both Mainland Tanzania and in Zanzibar. While post has not yet completed disbursements to all 12 projects, the FY05 projects are on track to be completed well before September 2006. ¶3. Post has demonstrated efficient management of the seven Self-Help projects funded in Tanzania in FY04 for a total of USD 61,500. The Ambassador has been commissioning these projects, and several more inaugurations are planned for February and March 2006. The FY04 Self-Help projects received wide media coverage and as a result post received over 150 proposals for FY05. The quality of the increased number of Self-Help project proposals is improving in planning and creativity as well. ¶4. For FY06, the Embassy is requesting USD 150,000. We intend to reach out to more under-served communities especially in the Islamic regions of Tanzania, in order to support our Mission Performance Plan (MPP) strategic goals in anti-terrorism, health and public diplomacy. Both the HIV/AIDS epidemic and endemic malaria leave behind thousands of widowed spouses and orphans each year who receive little or no help from the national or local governments. The Embassy will also identify projects in the more remote areas of Tanzania that receive minimal assistance from local governments. ¶5. The Self-Help projects that the Embassy is looking to fund in FY06 would focus on community-based initiatives including income-generating activities, small scale agriculture and environmental projects, small industry projects such as weaving, the construction of pipelines and wells for safe drinking water, and assisting schools with classroom construction and libraries. We have learned from prior years' experience that these initiatives are a cost effective way to promote community-level development. ¶6. The Embassy's Self-Help projects are widely and favorably publicized by the nationwide media and enhance the public image of the United States at a relatively low cost. While we have not yet identified individual projects for FY06, a centerpiece will be to fund several projects in Zanzibar and the Swahili Coast communities of Mainland Tanzania. ¶7. Tanzania held general elections for the presidency and the Parliament in December 2005. The country's new president, Jakaya Kikwete, was inaugurated in late December and has promised that one of his top priorities will be to facilitate reconciliation on the Zanzibar Isles. In line with that goal and with the Mission's Islamic outreach strategy, we will emphasize identifying viable projects throughout the Zanzibar Isles and in other predominantly Muslim communities on the Tanzanian Mainland. RETZER