Denmark gives US $8 million for refugee programmes

The Danish government recently announced that it would provide 8.9 billion shillings (US $8 million) over the next two and a half years for programmes in refugee camps and refugee-affected areas in Tanzania. A programme officer at the Danish Embassy in Dar es Salaam, Aderlardus Kilangi, told IRIN on Tuesday that the money would be divided equally between projects benefiting refugees from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Burundi, as well as Tanzanians living near the camps. The funds would be mainly disbursed for projects relating to environmental management, water development and the promotion of sustainable agriculture, though some money would also be spent on vocational training and UN joint initiatives, Kilangi said. He added that the first allotment of the money was handed out in December 2003. At least 480,000 refugees from the DRC and Burundi are living in camps in western Tanzania and the money will support projects in all the districts that have camps - Kigoma, Kasulu and Kibondo (in Kigoma region) as well as Ngara District in Kagera region. Although Kilangi said that the Danish Embassy in Tanzania regularly gave money for refugee issues, this contribution was unique in its magnitude and had to be authorised by the Danish Parliament.