NAIROBI, April 24 — The World Bank said on Tuesday it has suspended funding for a tourism and conservation project in Tanzania following allegations of human rights abuses.

The US$150 million Resilient Natural Resource Management for Tourism and Growth Project (REGROW) was set up with the aim of improving the management of natural resources and tourism assets in southern Tanzania, according to the World Bank.

But the Oakland Institute, a US-based think tank, raised allegations last year of forced evictions and rights abuses against communities living near Ruaha national park, which the government is planning to expand as part of the scheme.

The World Bank said it was "deeply concerned about the allegations of abuse and injustice” related to REGROW.

"The projects we finance are designed to support the livelihoods of the poorest and most vulnerable people, and we have robust policies in place to identify and avoid harmful impacts,” a spokesperson said in an email to AFP.

"We have recently received information that suggests breaches of our policies in the implementation of the REGROW project. We have therefore decided to suspend further disbursement of funds with immediate effect.”

The Oakland Institute said in a statement that the project impacted tens of thousands of villagers in Tanzania and that the World Bank’s funding had "paved the way for widespread human rights abuses” against communities living near Ruaha.

It said it had reported last year that the Tanzanian government planned to forcibly evict more than 20,000 people to expand the park and that it had "documented violence and rampant cattle seizures” by wildlife rangers.

"The long overdue decision of the World Bank to suspend this dangerous project is a crucial step towards accountability and justice,” Oakland Institute’s executive director Anuradha Mittal said in the statement.

"It sends a resounding message to the Tanzanian government that there are consequences for its rampant rights abuses taking place across the country to boost tourism.”

The government has not yet commented publicly.

The East African country is renowned for its spectacular wildlife parks such as the Serengeti, as well as being home to Africa’s tallest mountain Kilimanjaro and Indian Ocean islands including Zanzibar.

The tourism sector generated US$3.37 billion in revenue in 2023 as international arrivals rebounded by 24 per cent to 1.8 million, according to official figures. — AFP