| "It's not only economists who worry about economic growth, it's also the poor who worry about economic growth because they know it's their only way out of poverty." |
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William Easterly |
Does giving aid to the poor end poverty?
The United Nations promises to halve world poverty within the next 10 years. The world's richest countries regularly increase the amount of aid they give to Africa. Celebrities like pop star Bono tell us it's up to us to end the poverty trap.
However, according to professor Easterly, none of this will do much good. He is sceptical about UN summits saying that their purpose seems to be to commemorate the failure of the last one. Extreme poverty, he insists, can only be ended in the Third World, as it has been everywhere else - through the efforts of homegrown political, economic and social reformers.
William Easterly is professor of economics at New York university and author of The White Man's Burden: Why the West's Efforts to Aid the Rest Have Done So Much Ill and So Little Good. He defended his arguments before an expert panel.
Bram van Ojik is head of the valuation department for the Dutch foreign office and until recently director of the millennium development task force team for the Dutch government.
Ralf Bodelier is a journalist and author of Help, a book endorsing aid.
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| Click to listen to the programme | |
William Easterly:
"All of the politicians, all of the G8 summits, all of the Live8 concerts and the Bonos and the Madonnas are all about raising money as if just raising the money was the answer, when in fact raising money is five percent of the problem, the other nine percent is implementing the other difficult complex projects to make the money reach the poor."
Bram van Ojik:
"Mr Easterly is right, we're all to blame and not only the donor agencies, but also the governments of the countries themselves, let's please not forget that. At the same time we see there is considerably progress, and that's where we disagree; aid can claim some credits."
Ralf Bodelier:
"I think this 2.3 trillion US dollars that was poured into aid is more or less peanuts if you spread this amount over 50 years and 2.5 billion poor people. That's only 6 cents a poor man a day. How can you make progress with so little money?"
William Easterly:
"Even though aid cannot achieve economic growth, there are good things it can do to give more opportunities for poor people and to elevate some of the desperate suffering, if only aid agencies were held more accountable for results, which is not happening now."
Bram van Ojik:
"I don't want to say that we should sit back and say it is the way it is. That would be a big mistake and that's why a book like Mr Easterly's is very important and needed. But let's put it in perspective and not say 'well the aid agencies and the lack of accountability is to blame', because there are many more factors that count."
Ralf Bodelier:
"I don't think someone is guilty for making people poor and making people die. The problem is Africa didn't develop because it's very far behind."
A selection of your emails:
Jasmin, India:
"Aid will never help the poor of any country, but will certainly make the politicians or aid-takers rich. It is well known how the money is siphoned, even the equipment etc. never reaches the sufferers of natural disasters, which is really sad. I really don't think there is any solution till the recipient politicians/ institutions themselves become honest and the poor raise their voice.
I know it from my own country, how aid from the World Bank has been misappropriated and I guess the GDP of India is far higher than these affected African countries. We the people are the problem and only we the people have to be the solutions by bringing honesty and transparency into our dealings. We lack compassion for the poor and needy .And compassion comes from within."
Timothy , New South Wales, Australia:
"I don't think that aid is the answer to the poverty question, since it will go on regardless of what is done by the different countries. And I agree with William that unless the respective countries do something to help themselves instead of expecting others to give them aid, nothing will change."
Alberto, Miami:
"Foreign aid does not end poverty. What is needed is for people to work and produce their own goods. Another is a need for a free trade which is equal and without governments - especially those in North America and Europe - imposing unfair tariffs and quotas."
Allan, Amsterdam:
"As long as the recipient nations' leaders use foreign aid to boost their personal power and wealth, I think we do more harm than good. But if this is the case, should we just stop giving aid?"
Blake, San Francisco:
"Of course, giving the proper kind of aid is not a waste. And Third World countries have had the resources sucked out of them for decades by big corporations form usually wealthy countries, and should be re-paid.
However, we often see conservative politicians make a mockery of aid programs by intentionally perverting their application. For example, we in the USA have Republican politicians, for years, using the Peace Corps as fronts for local political sabotage, or to build up international corporate influence instead of local empowerment... their intention is not to help, but to exploit.
It goes back to the old adage 'give a man a fish and feed him for a day; teach him to fish and feed him for life.' So we have 'real aid' given to poor countries to help them become stronger and self-sufficient, or 'fake aid' given to poor countries to exploit their weaknesses and re-colonize them in effect.
The same principle holds true with domestic welfare assistance programs... 'real aid' given to educate, build skills, and empower the poor - or 'fake aid' used to exploit the poor for the rich, or to keep them weak or dependent and without the information or skills needed to empower themselves, or turn them into virtual low-wage slaves for the wealthy.
This also reminds me of the adage 'money is the root of all evil'. Well, that's true if the money is abused, but not true if it is not. Unfortunately, we have far too many Machiavellian politicians in power now pretending to be humanitarians, whereas their economic policies are in fact in some cases ruthlessly inhumane and almost neo-fascist.
In times of economic depression, money and resources do not disappear... instead they become grossly mal-distributed so that the very wealthy own and control all, as though they are some sort of restored feudal aristocracy. And this latter issue is probably the biggest single problem in the world right now."
Peter, South Africa:
"Foreign aid will never end poverty in poor countries; this is because rich countries are still continuing to take out large amounts of money in the form of resources from those poor countries."
Adnan, the Netherlands:
"That is undeniably true, no foreign aid can end poverty as it is not meant for infrastructure, e.g. industry, education, etc. In most of the cases it is provided for political purposes and used by curbing opponents in the Third World countries."
Agrinsoni, San Juan, Puerto Rico USA:
"One of the definitions of charity is 'the provision of help or relief to the poor'. The problem of global aid to poorer or developing countries lies in the false expectation of a complete eradication of poverty and misery.
Charity is a very effective way to help when disasters strike, but we shouldn't fool ourselves into thinking that it will produce long term major changes in situations that are the results of a long period of open or hidden colonialism, damaging foreign intervention and exploitation.
Poverty is also the result of unfair and discriminatory international business and trade policies, ethnic and political discrimination and local government corruption. There are things money can't buy."
Jude, Canada:
"If the West really wants to help end poverty, here is a good way to begin. Lock South African president Thabo Mbeki in a room for an hour. Put in that room with him a Zimbabwean who has seen his home destroyed and his family murdered by the regime of Mr. Mbeki's good friend Robert Mugabe. How even relatively successful African leaders can be apologists for their psychopathic neighbours is a mystery that defies explanation. Suffice to say I share Mr. Easterly's misgivings on handouts."
Steve, New England, USA:
"ONLY BIRTH CONTROL WILL END POVERTY!"
Brian, Canada:
"Aid does not necessarily mean alms. The First World countries have been generous in giving charitable donations to the Third World. It should instead help those in need to overcome the cycle of poverty by teaching them sustainable goals.
The Chinese for instance, in Africa and elsewhere, are busy upgrading the infrastructure of these poor countries and thus giving them a hand-up and not a hand-out, in return for obtaining mineral rights, etc."
Evert, Lansdale, USA:
"If aid is beneficial or not remains to be seen, but it is the unseen effects that are preventing the poor countries from pulling themselves up by their boot straps, such as farm subsidies in rich countries, free trade and suggesting that poor countries should only use non polluting wind, solar or similar green energy sources instead of coal or oil they might have available within their borders.
Non of these green sources will allow any form of significant industry unless they have nuclear power, and they certainly lack the funds for that. Perhaps that is the area in which they could be getting some effective aid."
Tags: Bono, development, Easterly, economy, foreign aid, Geldof, Live8, poverty