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| International aid, also called foreign aid or development assistance, refers to the situation when one country helps another through a donation. Most often it is industrialized countries giving money to developing countries. For many poor countries, international aid provides critical funding for education, health, agriculture and public infrastructure. |
| The United Nations has set a target for official development assistance of 0.7% of gross national product (GNP) for rich nations - in the U.S. that is less than one penny on each dollar earned. Most nations do not meet that target. The United States falls far short - giving only 0.12% in economic aid, much less than countries like Norway, Sweden and the Netherlands, with significantly lower per capita income. |
| There are downsides to aid as well. Sometimes recipients are required to use the aid in ways that serve the donor but do not necessarily address the real development needs of the recipients. |
| Western countries should be encouraged to fulfill the standard for aid set by the United Nations. And while this aid is extremely important, other development interventions like debt relief and fair trade should be given equal consideration. |
For more information about these issues, please follow the links below.
- UN SYSTEM NETWORK ON RURAL DEVELOPMENT AND FOOD SECURITY
The UN System Network on Rural Development and Food Security is a global partnership approach working to improve rural development challenges at the country level.
www.rdfs.net/index.htm
- UNITED NATIONS DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME (UNDP)
World leaders have pledged to achieve the Millennium Development Goals, including the overarching goal of cutting poverty in half by 2015. UNDP, the UN's global development network, links and coordinates global and national efforts to reach these goals.
www.undp.org/
- WORLD FOOD PROGRAMME (WFP)
WFP is the United Nations frontline agency in the fight against global hunger, meeting emergency needs and supporting economic & social development.
www.wfp.org/
- WORLD BANK
The World Bank is a development bank which provides loans, policy advice, technical assistance and knowledge sharing services to low and middle income countries to reduce poverty.
www.worldbank.org/
- INTERNATIONAL MONETARY FUND (IMF)
The IMF is an organization of 184 countries, working to foster global monetary cooperation, secure financial stability, facilitate international trade, promote employment and sustainable economic growth, and reduce poverty.
www.imf.org/
- USAID
USAID, an independent US federal government agency, works in agriculture, democracy & governance, economic growth, the environment, education, health, global partnerships, and humanitarian assistance in more than 100 countries.
www.usaid.gov/
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