Back to Index

State sets up committee to probe NGOs
The Herald (Zimbabwe)
March 16, 2005

http://www.herald.co.zw/index.php?id=41660&pubdate=2005-03-16

GOVERNMENT has appointed an eight-member committee to investigate 13 non-governmental organisations (NGOs) that have failed to account for more than US$88 million mobilised through the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

Seventeen other NGOs successfully met the March 11 Government deadline by which they were supposed to have accounted for the funds.

The money was mobilised after the Government made a consolidated appeal to the international community for humanitarian assistance in 2003.

Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare Minister Cde Paul Mangwana yesterday said he had since appointed a committee of eight officers to investigate the remaining 13 NGOs.

"I have appointed the committee according to Section 8 of the Private Voluntary Organisations (PVO) Act and members of the committee have already been given their terms of references," the minister said.

He said the committee — which includes personnel from the Criminal Investigation Department’s Serious Frauds Squad — was scheduled to start work yesterday and would produce a preliminary report within the next two weeks.

A full report was expected within a month.

"Those NGOs found to be on the wrong side of the law after the release of the final report would be handed over for prosecution.

"However, if criminal cases are unearthed during the course of the investigation, we will not wait to hand over the perpetrators to the police for prosecution. If the committee comes across any unregistered NGOs, then they will also be prosecuted," he said.

Cde Mangwana said the committee would seek to establish whether the foreign currency received by the NGOs was handled within the confines of the country’s foreign currency exchange regulations.

The committee, said Cde Mangwana, was also mandated to look at the ratio between operational and administrative expenses to assess whether the money received was used or managed to achieve intended objectives.

The Government early this month wrote to the NGOs giving them March 11 as the deadline by which they should have accounted for the money or face appropriate action under the PVO Act.

Under the Act, the minister can either suspend, institute an investigation into the operations of an NGO or prosecute the offending organisation or its directors for abusing public funds.

The US$88,7 million was mobilised through the NGOs after international donors had put in a condition that the money should not be handled by the Government.

Despite that stipulation, the money was deemed public funds because it was raised on behalf of the Government and people of Zimbabwe.

However, last week the minister said the Government’s investigation was not restricted to the 30 named NGOs only, but would be extended to all NGOs.

The minister said this after a lengthy meeting with the acting UNDP resident representative, Mr Benard Mokam.

He also revealed that his ministry had already asked other line ministries to submit lists of NGOs that they were working with.

In addition, he said, they also wanted all NGOs to submit annual financial and technical reports that reflect the money that they receive each year and the activities that they undertake during each particular year.

"NGOs have a duty to account for their activities to Government as clearly spelt out in the Private Voluntary Organisations Act and as is the case with internationally-accepted principles.

"This is what we are simply asking them to do. We are not fighting them. We simply want to promote a culture of transparency and accountability," the minister said.

Cde Mangwana also indicated that his ministry had consulted widely with both the donor community and the UNDP and both were in total agreement with the Government’s position.

Mr Mokam said it was important to note that the Government’s position was not peculiar to Zimbabwe, but was a world wide practice.

Please credit www.kubatana.net if you make use of material from this website. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License unless stated otherwise.

TOP