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The Forum > Article Comments > Does aid work? > Comments

Does aid work? : Comments

By James Cumes, published 26/5/2005

James Cumes argues aid to the developing world will be more effective if it goes hand-in-hand with worldwide economic reforms.

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This article makes sense, but there are other reasons why aid in its current form does not work. Today's Guardian covers one of them;
http://society.guardian.co.uk/aid/comment/0,14178,1493585,00.html

Apparently less than 40% of aid money actually reaches its target, and if the aid comes from France or the USA this figure falls to just 10%. The rest of the money goes on "corporate welfare" in the donor country - consultants, multinationals, bureaucracts etc.

Thus 3rd world countries are often used as clearing houses to "launder" public money on its way into private hands.

In such circumstances the emphasis is on spending the money rather than actually achieving anything worthwhile with it, so its no wonder the results are so dismal.
Posted by AndrewM, Friday, 27 May 2005 6:42:47 PM
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"The World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), also formed post-war by eminent economists of the day, were very different than they are now. Both were expected to help the major countries - the G7 of the post-war period - to avoid the miseries of the Great Depression of the 1930s, and to achieve full employment and economic stability."

And the role of IMF and WB did not change - they still work to providing benefits for major countries. And corporations that rule them.

Developing world was saying for a long time that they don't need "aid", they need fair trade and cooperation from developed world. Since they learnt that that it is unlakely to happen any time soon they have taken steps to help themselves. First through non-aligned movement and than more recently through G24 and similar economic groups (http://www.g24.org) as well through bi-lateral cooperation with major non-G7 nations.
Posted by Dejan, Sunday, 29 May 2005 2:29:45 PM
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International aid works perfectly for the mates granted with funding for providing itself this aid…
Posted by MichaelK., Tuesday, 31 May 2005 11:52:04 AM
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Aid, if it is going to succeed long-term, has to be based on exonomics as a science rather than as a religion. Currently, faith is pre-eminent - and the article does little to address the impediment.

Until the economic wizards who hold the whip-hand on world "development" adjust their preferred models to reality, prospects are hopeless.

There is mathematical certainty that positive economic growth in a finite world can not be the economic imperative forever. Environmental capital is finite, underwrites economic systems, yet is regarded as an externality in the models adopted for human societies.

The air we breathe, quality fresh water, fertile land, biodiversity, - all are fundamental props for the world economic system. These foundations have degraded substantially, especially post world war II. Especially this been so for the less developed nations, the recipients of aid.

While these economic resourcs have been diminishing, the numbers of people dependent upon them have been increasing. Substantially. For the world in 1950, environmental wealth was shared (very unequally) among 2.5 billion people. This wealth has been plundered, rather than husbanded, for another half century since then. Now, there is less available for either plundering or for sharing. Even worse an extra 4 billion people, currently 6.5 billion, depend on them.

The best conceived and administered plans for aid are doomed to eventually fail when donor countries' economies continue to grow (4%pa. preferred) at environmental expense; and recipient ones continue to multiply their numbers of consumers - so many of them desperate - in Africa generally at 2.2%, Asia 1.35%, Latin America 1.4%.

High-powered conferences at Rio (1992), Cairo (1994) and elsewhere since, have flagged the discord of human numbers and environmental capacity; but economics as a religion has prevented progress. And looks like continuing to do so. Social disasters throughout the world are escalating as a consequence.
Posted by colinsett, Monday, 6 June 2005 8:06:08 PM
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