Why can’t foreign aid be by way of value added products, rather than CASH WE DON’T HAVE

Imagine if a farmer was given a guarantee that if the market falls then they would be able to claim back the costs as the government would take their products, value add them using our non-working population, then send this as foreign aid rather than sending cash which we simply don’t have and have to borrow in the first place.

Could we implement a system whereby ALL welfare recipients have to work for their dollars in some factory nearby which value adds all left over products ready for foreign aid.

Say the dole is $550 per fortnight and the min wage is $17 per hour, then they simply have to work about 32 hours per fortnight for their money. What's wrong with that?

We can also provide child care for the mothers, all through welfare recipients.

After all, the government is already paying this money out, so why not create jobs by putting this welfare money to better use.

Let’s see some third world hierarchy try selling frozen meat on the black market.

It’s hard, it’s complex, but is there a way to do it. If so, the benefits to our nation would be enormous. No more CASH hand outs to foreign nations, no more wasted welfare.

Please, don’t knock me, help me. Together we may just come up with something worth while here.

Rehctub “Why can’t foreign aid be by way of value added products, rather than CASH WE DON’T HAVE”

I think you will find a lot of “Aid” is given in the form of manufactured / grown products and services.

Certainly the US AID budget is dominated by the supply of non-monetary support.

I further recall a lot was being made of tying debt interest relief into the AID budgets particularly in Africa.

My own concern with all the AID budgets is this

1 What % of the AID actually gets delievered to where it is intended

2 Why, after 50 years of governmental independence (from those wicked colonial masters), has Africa gone backwards and continues to need more handouts and what seems to be a never ending stream of external support?

As for trying to organize the indolent into work teams… if you saw the movie “Cool Hand Luke”, starring Paul Newman, you would know why such notions will never work.

The best way of making a better future for welfare recipients is to be a consumer and the welfare recipients who are unemployed and really want to work will get jobs through your participation in the national economy,

The rest should have their “benefits” cut and be left to their own wasteful devices.

Of course some of them might turn to crime in which case, bang them into prison and create more jobs for custodial staff..it’s a shame we cannot exile them to somewhere like Van Diemen's Lan

An interesting discussion on Radio National Breakfast re funding HIV programs in Asia : http://www.abc.net.au/rn/breakfast/stories/2009/2654264.htm

To paraphrase: Asian govts are said to be not spending enough on the problem.Australia has an –obligation –to make up the shortfall.
I like in particular the comment that, unless WE support these programs now, WE (OZ) will inevitably have to pay the cost of treatment through foreign aid later.

Note two things:
1) Most of the countries mentioned are quite affluent, modern countries.
2) The funding is being sought – disproportionately – from the West.

I would suggest that it’s this sort of --middle class welfare-- that turns some off supporting calls for increased foreign aid

Congates rechtub for starting the thread, keeping my promise.
The matter is complex not an easy fix,your plan COSTS CASH.
Even the freight costs, it also seeks to give to farmers, clearly socialism for them, and take from under privileged.
But we do need to pay back our debts, create work, and gee my brothers from left of center will hate me, control welfare, redirect it, refocus it, get returns from it.
World trade currently stops us growing too much, subsidizing it, then giving it away.
In the long run it hurts as much as it helps.
Ludwig may well ask do we benefit mankind by feeding millions who can not feed themselves?
Aid food is just a short term answer that can fix nothing.
And putting unemployed, even the very worst bludgers, and there are some, in a factory near you is silly.
It helps that factory get advantage over the bloke down the road, interferes with free trade.
All work for unemployed should add value to the community, not ever take jobs that already exist.
Not in any way compete with existing jobs, if it does it creates more unemployment.
Step one welfare, believe it or not I see value in your idea, about working for some hours at minimum wage rates.
Remember however some would love it, a safe refuge from full time work, at our expense.
So what work.
Once, yes it is true, it could have been local councils and state government jobs, a silent but well known and used plan was in place to employ the unemployable in country towns in those jobs.
more next time

The world bank and the IMF have a lot to answer for here.They loan to corrupt Govts who squander money and put the people into debt slavery of which they cannot escape.

Poor countries do not need money.They need education and a political/economic system free from corruption.