countries, especially in the fields of scienceand industry. (IRNA website, Tehran 7 ⁄ 6)In a separate development, the President ofthe Algerian-Tunisian Joint Chamber(CMTA), Moncef Othmani, speaking at aworkshop, called for the creation of amutual fund to boost investment in the twocountries and the establishment of a bilateralregulatory framework conducive to businesscreation.

There are 70–80 Tunisian companies basedin Algeria. Algeria imports 80% of its needsfrom Tunisia.

Statistics on bilateral exchanges to late 2011show that energy products and lubricantsaccount for almost 87.16% of Tunisia’soverall imports from Algeria, while elec-tronic and mechanical industries represent42.1% of Tunisia’s total exports to Algeria.(Tunis Afrique Presse 11 ⁄ 6)Angola – Japan: Japan will invest in theagricultural and health sectors in easternMoxico province. The Japanese embassy hasalso released US$100,000 for the MotherTheresa of Calcuta Foundation that is reha-

bilitating a warehouse and an irrigation pro-ject. (PANA, Luena 18 ⁄ 6)Burundi – Belgium: Belgium is to give Bur-undi a total of €50m to finance severaldevelopment projects under a three-yearcooperation programme. However, the aid issubject to many conditions, including respectfor human rights and freedom of speech.

The Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki arrivedin Burundi for a three-day state visit on July1st aimed at boosting ties between the twocountries. Joint cooperation agreements invarious sectors, including defence, education,health, roads, diplomacy, agriculture andlivestock were signed. (PANA 26 ⁄ 6, 1 ⁄ 7)ClimDev-Africa Special Fund: The Swedishgovernment has pledged to commit €7.5m to aspecial fund of the Climate for Developmentin Africa Programme (ClimDev-Africa) esta-blished to pool resources and finance demand-driven projects in Africa that intend togenerate and disseminate climate informationto all levels of society. (AfDB website 15 ⁄ 6)The Gambia – Taiwan: President YahyaJammeh has completed a 5-day state visit to

Taiwan aimed at increasing bilateralexchanges. (Daily Observer, Banjul 2 ⁄ 7)Malawi – US: The US will restore aid worth$350m to Malawi’s energy sector followingreforms under new President Joyce Banda.

The Millennium Challenge Corporation(MCC) in 2011 suspended funds for thecountry’s crumbling energy sector due toconcerns about hardline governance andrights issues under late president Bingu waMutharika. Banda took over when Muthari-ka died in April, swiftly restoring relationswith donors.

The MCC said its board of directors votedto lift the suspension of the ‘‘compact’’ inrecognition of the decisive action taken torestore democratic accountability, to demon-strate respect for the rights of individuals,and to implement sound economic manage-ment,’’ MCC head Daniel Yohannes said ina statement. The $350m will go towardsupgrading the country’s energy grid and willprovide benefits to 5m people. (� AFP 22 ⁄ 62012)

ECONOMIC TRENDS

CENTRAL AFRICANREPUBLIC

Finance Minister Sacked

The move is a sop to donors and asign of the government’s fragility.

After nine years at the President’sright hand, Finance and Budget Min-ister Sylvain Ndoutingaı finds himselfout in the cold. Ndoutingaı, who isalso General Francois Bozize’snephew, was dismissed a month afterclaims he was involved in a coupattempt and shortly before the Inter-national Monetary Fund (IMF)announced on June 25th the start ofa $63m, three-year facility.

Ndoutingaı was once indispensable,and for many years, his ability to makeall the ministries pay off, especiallyMining, which he used to head, madehim a central part of the inner presi-dential circle. However, when hebecame Finance Minister in 2011, hehad to cope with a much deterioratedfiscal situation.

Bozize won the elections at enormouscost and the IMF has requested anexplanation of how some CFA francs49bn ($94m) of state funds werespent.

Ndoutingaı took a series of decisionsthat had convinced key donors suchas France and the European Union(EU) that he was worth dealing with.The US, however, along with theWorld Bank and IMF, believed hehad a track record of not respectingdeals, especially with American com-panies. The moves he made to reas-sure donors were seen locally ashostile to the client networks built bythe Bozize family. Ndoutingaı dis-solved boards of parastatal companies,froze bank accounts, investigatedmanagers for embezzlement, thenappointed his own men. Although thisimproved relations with some donorsand even satisfied a long-term BrettonWoods demand to raise the price ofpetroleum products, Washington wasunmoved. It made it clear that hewould not be welcome stateside.

With Ndoutingaı gone, Bozize’s sons,especially Francis and Socrate, willhave to step up but many doubt theirability to face the challenges ahead,such as coping with the IMF pro-gramme.

Although the IMF facility will proba-bly trigger more money from tradi-tional donors, its conditions involvestrong budgetary discipline, somethingbeyond most ministers or the Presi-dency. The new Finance Minister,Albert Besse, is a close friend of Presi-dent Bozize but, like many other minis-ters, is reputed to be incompetent atbest. (Africa Confidential 6 ⁄ 7)

FOOD SECURITYSahel

Tackling malnutrition is anever-present challenge.

Chad’s ‘‘embryonic’’ economy is amongfactors limiting the local diversity offood sources and income, notesUSAID’s Famine Early Warning Sys-tems Network (FEWS NET), addingthat sociocultural care practices andpoor health systems are also to blame.

Medecins sans Frontieres (MSF) isaddressing malnutrition primarily inthe Sahel region of Chad but is alsoactively screening areas throughout thecountry for alarming rates of malnutri-tion.

On June 19th, humanitarian organisa-tions appealed for $1.6bn to help 18.7mcrisis-affected people – up from 16m –in the Sahel. The appeal reflected anincrease in the population in need incountries such as Chad, where betweenJanuary and April the number of foodinsecure people shot up by 125% toreach 3.6m. The 2012 ConsolidatedAppeal by humanitarian agencies forChad had estimated that 1.6m peoplethere would be food insecure due tobelow average 2011 harvests and erraticrains. The Chadian government hasannounced the subsidised sale of cerealsbut aid officials say more needs to bedone.

‘‘We need to work better on the causesof the [food] crisis – not only the conse-quences because there will always bedrought in Chad,’’ according toOxfam’s emergency response manager,Christian Munezero.

Policy and Practice

Policy and Practice

19580 – Africa Research Bulletin

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� Blackwell Publishing Ltd. 2012.