What Tanzania’s “per diem town” says about African governance

such as Funky Squids Beach Resort, Bagamoyo sounds like a party town. It is not. Hotels depend on bureaucrats from Dar es Salaam, , 50km to the south. “Bagamoyo is per-diem town,” explains the head of an , in reference to “by the day” allowances claimed by civil servants for attending out-of-town events. “No meetings ever take place in government ministries,” he sighs. “Perdiemitis” is rife in Tanzania and many other countries in the region. In May the government announced that per diems for senior civil servants would more than double, from 120,000 shillings (about $50) to 250,000. The last detailed study, albeit from 2008-09, found that spending on allowances ($390m) was enough to pay the salaries of more than 100,000 teachers.