Research and analysis
Here are the simple steps Sikika took to
arrive at its findings.
1. In Tanzania the annual Controller and
Auditor General (CAG) report identifies
a range of questionable expenditures.
Guided by findings in earlier CAG reports
about questionable expenditures by the
MoHSW, Sikika examined the Ministry’s
budget proposal of 2008-09 and identified
some problematic budget lines. Simple
line-by-line addition resulted in shocking
numbers:
“Unnecessary Expenditures”
in MoHSW’s budget 2008-09
Item
Amount in TSh
Workshops/training
3,936,743,900
Overseas and local
travel
1,649,302,200
Allowances
22,627,302,307
Vehicles
6,001,509,282
Total
34,214,857,689
2. In order to examine government-wide
“unnecessary expenditures,” Sikika devel
oped categories that would be easy to
understand and comparable over time. It
looked through the whole budget, noting
line items of recurrent expenditures that
appeared consistently across ministries.
It developed six overarching categories of
“unnecessary expenditures:”
1. Training (domestic and overseas);
2. Allowances (discretionary, non
discretionary, and in-kind);
3. Travel (domestic and overseas);
4. Fuel, oil, and lubricants;
5. Purchase of new vehicles;
6. Hospitality.
Of course, not all such expenditures can
automatically be labeled as “unneces
sary.” Nonetheless, Sikika decided to single
out these items, because they knew that
in Tanzania allowances, training funds,
and related expenditure are often used
for political patronage or as perks for
underpaid civil servants. Trainings are
thus conducted in expensive hotels, and
officials are paid allowances to attend
them. Vehicles purchased are often luxury
vans.
3. Each year when the new budget books
are tabled in Parliament, Sikika updates its
file on “unnecessary expenditures”. This
allows it to identify trends among ministries
and departments, as well as trends within
specific agencies. Comparisons over three
years allowed Sikika to document that
while overall allocations to the categories
decreased by 22 percent from 2008-09
to 2010-11, training carried the brunt of
the reduction, with its allocation cut by 80
p� ercent over two fiscal years. Allowances,
on the other hand, kept increasing.
Reductions were also not uniform across
ministries, departments and agencies. For
example, Public Debt and General Services
reduced its allowances from TSh 4 billion
(US$ 2.98 million) to TSh 307 million (US$
226,000), while the Electoral Commission
increased allowances from TSh 389 million
(US$ 290,000) to TSh 27.3 billion (US$ 20
million).
Advocacy and outreach
Strategy 1: High-level advocacy
Sikika first presented its analysis to the
Health Financing Technical Working Group,
which plays an advisory role to the health
sector. It did not make a significant impact
on that group. The analysis was presented
again, some months later, to the annual
Health Sector Review, another gathering
of government, donors, and CSOs, under
the leadership of the Ministry of Health and
Social Welfare. Presenting the analysis
at that Review paid off, as was already
mentioned.
It seems that Sikika’s high-level approach—
within a space convened by the MoHSW,
but in which other key players, such as
donors, were also present—was a good
strategic choice. The space provided direct