(October 20, 2009) Stimulus packages aside, the so-called “Great Recession” is forcing government leaders across the world to look for ways to cut back on the cost of public services. No sector, or service, will be spared they say. But Carl Mortishead, writing in The Times, reports there is one government office in the UK that—far from being forced to trim costs—will be given a larger budget: The Department for International Development (DfID), the British government’s foreign aid flagship.
Breaking the myth of aid. Dambisa Moyo’s remedies
(September 30, 2009) Aid, argues Dambisa Moyo, does not eradicate some of Africa’s first rank scourges such as civil wars and corruption. Quite the reverse: development aid encourages corruption and allows some regimes to stay in place artificially. Because of the significant amounts that aid invests, it triggers envy and can stir up ethnic tensions, which sometimes lead to civil wars.
More money, more problems: The World Bank’s way
(September 25, 2009) In the wake of recent financial crisis, the World Bank called on the developed world to drastically increase lending to developing nations. Robert Zoellick and company say that countries in Africa and other parts of the developing world need this money to combat rising levels of poverty and an economic collapse.
World Bank projects in Kenya suspected of fraud
Internal auditors in Kenya’s Ministry of Finance have discovered losses of about 131 million shillings ($1.8 million) from what the country’s Finance Minister Uhuru Kenyatta says “appears to be fraud and corruption” in two World Bank-funded programs.
Probe International signs letter calling for a halt to monoculture tree plantations
Probe International has signed the World Rainforest Movement’s declaration to end the practice of monoculture tree plantations. We urge our supporters to follow suit and sign the petition.
Aid minister calls for debate over corruption
(Aug. 24, 2009) Sweden’s Minister for International Development Cooperation, Gunilla Carlsson, has called for an open debate over the role of development aid in the wake of a corruption scandal in Zambia.
More odious debts for the Democratic Republic of Congo if the World Bank gets its way
World Bank President Robert Zoellick is urging the Democratic Republic of Congo to pursue better governance as a way to entice more companies to build dams in the country. In his sights are the rehabilitation of the notoriously dysfunctional Inga 1 and 2 dams. But it’s projects like these that will create more odious debts for the country’s citizens.
As a people, Americans giving more of themselves
The Globe and Mail’s Neil Reynolds breaks down the foreign aid numbers.
The Gr8 Escape: The G8 is doing very little to help Africa
(July 17, 2009) Foreign aid is again in the spotlight after the recent G8 meeting in L’Aquila, Italy. One area that garnered particular attention from the media was the decision by G8 leaders to increase aid to Africa for food security and agricultural development to $20-billion-a 33% increase from the previously promised $15-billion.
Obama’s plan to override Congressional conditions for US funding of World Bank is overwhelmingly rejected by lawmakers
(July 17, 2009) President Obama recently received a harsh lesson from Congress after he decided to openly ignore some of the environmental, labour and transparency regulations attached to funds allocated for the World Bank and IMF. Worse still for the President, the indictment came from both sides of the aisle—with 429-2 voting to negate the recent signing statement.
EU was world’s largest aid donor in 2008
(July 13, 2009) The European Union said Friday that it was the world’s biggest aid donor last year, spending euro 12 billion (US$16.7 billion) on poorer nations – or about 60 percent of all global aid.
The Pope issues a tired Old Left manifesto
(July 11, 2009) The Globe and Mail’s Neil Reynolds looks at the pontiff’s examination of foreign aid and charity.
Why Are We Still Poor?
(July 6, 2009) Look at the woman in the photograph on the left and her surrounding carefully. Does she look like someone who has been given help by aid agencies like United States Agency for International Development (USAID), Danish International Development Agency (DANIDA), Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), Swedish International Development Agency (SIDA), Oxfam, Action Aid, Christian Aid, World Vision, Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) and JICA?
We are Tired of the Dictatorship and Corruption
(July 6, 2009) Protest Letter to the Politicians and Governments in Africa.
Foreign Aid and Bad Government
(January 30, 2009) As Barack Obama’s presidency takes shape, many analysts are calling for a new approach to foreign aid. Iqbal Z. Quadir wrote an article in the Wall Street Journal calling on the Obama administration to stop pouring billions of dollars into state bureaucracies and instead, promote bottom-up entrepreneurship. This, he argues, would be far more effective in alleviating poverty and supporting democracies in the developing world than traditional forms of foreign aid.
Patricia Adams
Dai Qing
Fan Xiao
Lawrence Solomon
Mu Lan
Probe International
Lisa Peryman
Patricia Adams and Lawrence Solomon
Other News Sources
