AID

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AID

AID- aid is help given often from one country to another

UN recommends rich that countries should give 0.7% of their GDP in aid.UK gives 0.4% of its GDP. Not many countries reach the target set by UN.

AID is given in 3 different ways :

Bilateral AID: government gives direct financial support to another government .

Multilateral AID: aid paid by various countries into a central pot like World Bank, UN and IMF.Multilateral aid can be given as grants or loans. World Bank and IMF give loans and charge interest on the loans .

NGO's : non profit organisations largely funded by private contributions like Oxfarm and CAFOD. They give direct financial donations

AID can also be described by its purpose:

Relief AID: short term aid following a disaster which aims to prevent the situation from deteriorating . eg Haiti earthquake and Tsunami .

Development AID: long term aid,which tries to build infrastructure . Involves a project for a local community to bring improvements to that community .

Modernization views on AID:

Aid is intrinsically positive.

Aid should aim at large scale reforms that enable countries to follow rich world's path.

Aid should aim overcome ECONOMIC BARRIERS. Aid should be spent importing Western technicians and experts to develop industries and modernize agriculture to support industrialization e.g by building roads , docks and putting electricity and water . THIS WILL HELP BREAK CYCLE OF POVERTY .

Aid should aim to overcome CULTURAL BARRIERS , investment in education to pass values such as individualism , achievement ,competition and entrepreneurial spirit .

Aid is a crucial component required for 'take off' through the stages of development (Rostow). Modernization theorist acknowledge that the elites in the developing world would be the primary beneficiaries of aid, but the poor would benefit from a 'trickle down' effect.

1950's large quantities of aid distributed, meant global levels of infant mortality , life expectancy , literacy levels improved slowly . 20 years following independence many African nations experienced economic growth .

HOWEVER ..despite huge amounts of aid pouring in , Countries such as Bangladesh became poorer in the 1980's and 1990's