Tanzania Receives TZS 203billion from IDA

STATEMENT BY DR. SERVACIUS B. LIKWELILE
PERMANENT SECRETARY OF THE MINISTRY OF FINANCE AND PAYMASTER GENERAL OF THE UNITED REPUBLIC OF TANZANIA ON THE OCCASION OF SIGNING A LOAN AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE GOVERNMENT AND THE INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATION (IDA) HELD ON 19th AUGUST, 2014, IN DAR ES SALAAM
 
Country Director for Tanzania, Uganda and Burundi,
Distinguished Guests,
Members of the Press,
Ladies and Gentlemen.

1. Mr. Country Director, allow me first of all, to express my pleasure for this opportunity of signing with you today the Loan Agreement under which the International Development Association will make available to Tanzania, credit in an amount of Special Drawing Rights (SDR) 78.8 million (U$122 million equivalent) equivalent to TZS 203 bilion to support the Big Results Now in Education Program.
2. Ladies and Gentlemen, the Big Results Now in Education Program aims at improving education quality of Primary and Secondary Education. The project constitutes of the following components:

A. Strengthening performance and improving transparency of schools through: (i) ranking of Primary and Secondary Schools based on annual examination results, and (ii) implementing a 3R skills assessment in Standard II of selected Primary Schools.

B. Providing: (i) School Incentive Grants to improving and best perfoming Primary and Secondary Schools, and (ii) non-monetary incentives to, and clearing of outstanding claims for Primary and Secondary Schools teachers.

C. Supporting Schools and addressing unequal resource distribution through, inter alia: (i) creation and distribution of practical toolkit for Primary and Secondary Schools, (ii) Organizing 3R training for Primary School teachers, (iii) Implementing the Student Teacher Enrichment Program, and (iv) Strengthening the monitoring and delivery system for timely delivery of Capitation Grants.

3. Mr. Country Director, the preparation of this Loan from the program design up-to the signing has involved many people and took long hours of hard work to discuss and negotiate various aspects and provisions of the Loan.

On behalf of the Government of the United Republic of Tanzania, allow me to thank you personally for your efforts on ensuring that the process was concluded in time. I would also want to thank all other people who were involved in the process, and who worked so hard in order to make it possible for this agreement to be signed today. I would urge you to sustain that spirit.

4. Mr. Country Director, Ladies and Gentlemen, let me conclude my short statement by re-affirming the Government’s Commitment towards implementation of this program to ensure that its development objective is achived; and to maintain and promote further, the partnership and friendly relationship between Tanzania and the World Bank.
Thank you for your kind attention.