Is Aid Given to Developing Countries a Good Thing?
It seems wrong to even ask the question: should we give money to help countries in need?
For many people, such as Bill Gates, the issue is about how much - not if at all. It may seem counterintuitive, but some African economists are now asking if development aid is a good thing. Maybe all the money that has been poured into sub-Saharan Africa is the cause, not the solution to poverty. Has development aid simply fuelled corruption and widened inequality?
For many people, such as Bill Gates, the issue is about how much - not if at all. It may seem counterintuitive, but some African economists are now asking if development aid is a good thing. Maybe all the money that has been poured into sub-Saharan Africa is the cause, not the solution to poverty. Has development aid simply fuelled corruption and widened inequality?
Dead Aid
Dambisa Moyo is a Zambian born economist with a PhD from Oxford. Her book, Dead Aid, has upset Bill Gates and many others with a stake in the aid business. Gates has accused Moyo's book of "promoting evil".
Moyo argues that aid simply does not work and that only real economic investment will bring jobs, wealth and prosperity to Africa. Economic growth in China provides a role model.
Moyo argues that aid simply does not work and that only real economic investment will bring jobs, wealth and prosperity to Africa. Economic growth in China provides a role model.
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When entering into the aid debate it is important to distinguish between the two main types of aid.
- Humanitarian or emergency aid. This is the aid (food, medicine, emergency shelter) given to help people cope with war, famine and natural disasters.
- Development aid. Development aid may come from governments, charities (NGOs) or from international organisations such as the World bank.
Has global capitalism had more impact on disparity than Aid?
Is the west fixated on aid? Photo:Hanna Butler/ IFRC
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"It is Chinese motorcycles and mobile phones - alongside Indian-made medicines, Turkish-built factories and innovative African technologies - that are transforming lives for millions of the planet’s poorest people. Like it or not, capitalism and consumerism drive profound change. Yet too many in the West remain locked in what Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Nigeria’s respected finance minister, calls a “lingering perception gap” when it comes to Africa, still fixated on anachronistic aid." Source: Independent News.
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Don't call it Aid - call it reparation for colonial rule
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Speaking at the Oxford Union, Indian MP Shashi Tharoor makes the argument that Britain does owe India money, following hundreds of years of oppressive colonial rule. Tharoor says Britain's development was financed by its exploitation of India.
Colonialism and especially the North Atlantic slave trade, provide a context for requiring many counties to continue providing development aid. Are rich nations being generous, or are they just giving back some of what they snatched? |
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Aid for trade
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Aid for trade, trade for aid
Lifting the “bottom billion” requires developing countries to effectively participate in global markets and scaling up global value chains. Trade-related reforms and an enhanced business environment can leverage the private sector’s contribution to development. The debate will focus on how best to achieve cooperation between trade-related bodies and governments, international organisations, donors and private sector to facilitate the latter’s access to global and regional markets. Source: European Union/ German Development Corporation |
Which countries give the most Aid?
Although the United States gives more aid than any other country, it is not the most generous nation. European nations such as Sweden and Luxembourg give a larger percentage of their wealth.
