By David Himbara
General Paul Kagame has built a reputation of zero tolerance for corruption. The Panama Papers exploded that myth as I wrote in 2016. The latest revelations come from the World Bank. Kagame’s Rwanda features in the suppressed World Bank’s report on how elites from poor aid-dependent countries loot foreign aid. The Rwandan elites – read Paul Kagame – looted US$190 million. The overall conclusion of the suppressed report is as follows:
“Aid disbursements to the most aid-dependent countries coincide with significant increases in deposits held in offshore financial centers known for bank secrecy and private wealth management. Aid capture by ruling politicians, bureaucrats and their cronies is consistent with the totality of observed patterns…Our estimates suggest a leakage rate of around 7.5% for the average highly aid-dependent country.”
The World Bank’s suppressed report is found here. Kagame and his cronies, however, are not the biggest looters of foreign aid in East Africa.
The honours go Tanzania that looted a shocking US$582 million, followed by Uganda with US$261 million.
Rwanda is in the third place with US$190 million. Burundi comes last, having looted US$122 million.