Foreign Aid News

If an identical earthquake struck two different countries of the same economic standing, but of a different political makeup, would the results be the same? And if one country was founded on a democracy, while the other was led by an autocrat, who would be worse off? Two professors, writing in Foreign Affairs, provide a convincing argument that citizens living under a democratically-run government would be much better off than those living under the rule of an autocrat.  read more »

As deadly floods continue to disrupt the lives of Pakistan's hapless flood-afflicted millions, the county’s government is defending itself from allegations that during the last humanitarian crisis—the Kashmir earthquake in 2005—corrupt officials diverted hundreds of millions of dollars in foreign aid to other unidentified government expenditures. Donors are now thinking twice about handing over millions more to a country where, says one critic, the “weakness of the state has reached extraordinary levels.”  read more »

The Chinese government is quickly learning how to milk the foreign aid game. In a recent report, China—despite holding on to more than $2.4-trillion of foreign reserves and, itself, giving billions of dollars in aid to less developed countries—has received $1-billion in aid money from the Global Fund, with the World Bank as its trustee, to fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, making it the fourth largest recipient of the aid program, and putting it ahead of traditional aid favourites such as Ethiopia, India and Tanzania for the program’s grants.  read more »

Many look to the U.S. as the necessary catalyst for change say watchdog groups, such as Probe International. The U.S. essentially subsidizes Pakistan’s economy by providing billions in foreign aid, giving the Pakistani government little incentive to reform the tax system. Thus, indirectly, U.S. aid inevitably hurts Pakistan's poor.  read more »

As the British government looks for ways to save money, the public has been quick with a suggestion: cut foreign aid. According to recent reports, after George Osborne, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, appealed to the public for ways to cut the country’s debt, the most popular response was to make major cuts to the government’s overseas aid budget.  read more »

Decades of evidence show that billions of dollars in foreign aid has lined the pockets of corrupt government leaders and undermined political accountability. Recent reports from Afghanistan that billions of dollars are being openly shipped from Kabul International Airport—with much of this money, authorities believe, siphoned from aid programs—provides more evidence that foreign aid can benefit the few at the expense of the many.  read more »

The food aid business is not simply for charity, it’s also a major source of jobs for businesses across the United States. According to a recent report from consultancy group Promar International, the overall economic impact of moving food aid from the nation’s farms to the ports and then on to foreign countries accounts for more than 13,000 jobs and amounts to almost $2-billion in goods and services, or output.  read more »

In the PNG news,  there is an article by Isaac Nicholas that quotes the results of a European Union funded geological survey. The survey data apparently revealed potentially large mineral deposits in the PNG Highlands. The minerals mentioned were copper, gold, silver, zinc, chromium and nickel.  read more »

Britain has launched an inquiry into reports that millions of pounds of aid for education and the 'Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan', has disappeared into the depths of corruption without any benefit to the poor children the aid was intended for.  read more »

Questions about the effectiveness of aid have given rise to a lively debate. Conventional wisdom holds that it is still essential if Africa is to have any chance of reducing poverty. But some development economists dissent from this view, arguing that aid fosters dependency, encourages corruption and undermines the ability of Africans to manage their own economies.  read more »