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Low Hanging Fruit. Central Europe and Development Aid for AfricaThis proposal is based on the definition of a smaller, more precisely defined area tosupport using SlovakAid funds in the border areas of Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda. Thisarea sets the border between east and west in Kenya, encompassing the around south ofthe Mombasa—Nairobi—Eldoret road, the shores of Lake Victoria in Uganda around theJinja—Kampala—Masaka road and in the area of Tanzania north of the line connecting thecities of Tanga—Arusha—Mwanza—Bukoba line from the ocean to the Tanzanian shore ofLake Victoria. This area, roughly in the shape of a chicken leg (or a tennis racquet for thosevegetarians out there), includes the entire shore of Lake Victoria in addition to the Kenya—Tanzania border. The ability to support pilot activities and projects in nearby Rwanda andBurundi should also remain open.The definition of space is key in the process of East African integration. From a practicalperspective, the majority of this area is easily accessed, making it easier and cheaper tomonitor from the embassies in Nairobi, in which all 5 EAC counties maintain diplomaticand operational capabilities. At the same time the area includes key urban centres in Kenya,Tanzania and Uganda including East Africa’s “Brussels”, the city of Arusha which is home tothe EAC authorities. This ultimately provides sufficient absorption space to support a hugenumber of small projects with massive local development impact.Even the proposed and expanded €10 million a year Slovak development assistancebudget concentrated in this area would not support large infrastructure projects along thelines of railroads, roads and bridges. However, this sum is sufficient to make an importantcontribution towards improving the transportation use of Lake Victoria. The massive potentialof the lake remains largely untapped and existing infrastructure is in worse conditionthan during the British Empire.I expect that NGDOs and individuals involved in development assistance in South Sudanto be, and quite understandably, against this proposal. It is an undeniable fact, however,that Slovakia does not have the financial or human capacities to ensure that our developmentassistance spread over such a large, hard to access and conflict-riddled countrycould achieve any significant development effect. In South Sudan our doctors, teachers andagriculture experts have been able to improve living conditions for thousands and certainlyhave saved many lives. The cost of their work and to provide and monitor this developmentassistance to South Sudan is so high that it is obviously unsustainable given the capacitiesof an actor as small as Slovakia’s ODA.Slovakia, thankfully, does not have any experience with conflicts and post-conflict interventions,as opposed to integration processes; it simply lacks any comparative benefitsfor working in South Sudan when compared to countries that have built the human andtechnical capacities for such activities. Lifting South Sudan up out of its current situation,if at all realistic, will undoubtedly take an extended period of time. With the exception ofplans to construct an oil pipeline through northern Kenya, there are definitely windows ofopportunity of any repute where Slovak development assistance could serve as a catalyst orplay an important role with any potential to drive the country forward. It’s almost certainthat South Sudan will spend many more years in a period of nearly permanent crisis, or in261