Most of Ireland’s foreign aid budget goes to just seven African countries. The Irish Independent asks why is there little debate over whether these funds are going where they should, following high-profile […]
Africa in Fact: dirty dealing
The September 2014 issue of the monthly current affairs magazine, Africa in Fact, offers a dramatic snapshot of the all-embracing and, at times, astonishing ways in which the cancer of corruption impacts societies, diverting resources from much-needed public services, ranging from health care to national defence, into private pockets.
‘The Office’ meets NGOs
(February 12, 2014) That’s how Hussein Kurji, the creator of Kenya’s first mockumentary, describes his new television series, ‘The Samaritans’ — a satirical look at the absurdities of the international aid sector. Comic though the premise is, a far more serious critique of NGO accountability and effectiveness lies beneath.
Is foreign aid to Africa making matters worse?
(December 9, 2013) Travel writer and novelist Paul Theroux believes that decades of foreign aid to Africa has hampered the continent’s development.
Grand Inga Dam: Another white elephant for the DR Congo
(November 21, 2011) An article in the Daily Maverick argues that the proposed Grand Inga Dam in the DR Congo is a “beautiful vision” that would “fix Africa” by “lighting up the heart of darkness”, powering African industries and forcing countries to rely on each other.
UN carbon offsets used to pay polluters, steal land: The Gaia Foundation
(February 28, 2011) Environmental NGO claims that carbon credits could lead to massive land grabs for environmentally damaging projects such as biofuels and industrial tree planting, and creates perverse incentives that reward pollution.
Lagos eyes financial boom from climate doom
(February 14, 2011) The article from the Daily Independent in Nigeria explains how governments can profit from the panic over climate change.
Kenyan corruption case a step forward for odious debts campaign
(December 12, 2006) An International Centre for the Settlement of Investment Disputes tribunal has struck out a lawsuit against the Kenyan government over a contract dispute after it discovered the contract had been secured illegally through a US$2 million bribe paid to former President Daniel arap Moi.
SA loan for Mugabe would be a mistake
(August 5, 2005) Zimbabwean civic groups have expressed outrage at South Africa’s decision “in principle” to bail out President Robert Mugabe’s government and pay off some of its debts.
Sub-Saharan debt: the imperative of contract adjustment
(July 1, 2005) Debtor perspectives lack the scholarly attention needed to inform theories, policy and strategies on debt management and illuminate the socio-economic dynamics that keep Third World economies unsustainable.
KAIROS analysis of debt recommendations in Commission for Africa Report
(April 1, 2005) Possible actions in the report’s Annex 9 are closer to the actual proposals being debated by G7 finance ministers: some additional debt service relief until 2015 and reinforcement of IMF and World Bank conditionality for African countries.
Our common interest
(March 1, 2005) British Prime Minister Tony Blair’s Commission for Africa report.
The impact of debt burden on women
(February 2, 2005) The early 1980’s financial crisis faced by many countries in the South had unpayable debt service as the immediate cause that was precipitated by the tight money policies in the rich countries that drastically hiked international interest rates. The debt debate ignores the fact that debts were contracted as a result of borrowing by undemocratic governments that were not mandated by the people.
UK corruption allegations ‘not investigated’
(March 24, 2004) Allegations of bribery and corruption by British companies and individuals overseas are far more common than published government figures suggest, an investigation by the Financial Times has found.
Africa’s odious debts
(July 6, 2003) The war in Iraq might have succeeded in dismantling at least one weapon of mass destruction, the debt bomb.
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Dai Qing
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