Foreign Aid FAQs – #10 “Aid money is spent on the wrong things”
There is a widespread belief that overseas aid money is either handed over to corrupt dictators and never reaches the people it is supposed...
Foreign Aid FAQs – #9 “They’re poor because they’re lazy”
A common attitude nowadays is that people are rich because they work hard and deserve to be wealthy, whereas people are poor because they...
Foreign Aid FAQs – #8 “Why has nothing been achieved?”
The fight to eradicate global poverty has been going on for decades. Yet despite all the money that has been donated and all the...
Foreign Aid FAQs – #6 “Their own government should help them”
It is without a doubt true that governments should help their own people. However, this phrase is often used to mean that the welfare...
Foreign Aid FAQs – #5 “Foreign aid fuels overpopulation”
Concerns about overpopulation, or the ‘population explosion’ as it’s sometimes called, are widespread at the moment. The logic surrounding these concerns is understandable –...
Foreign Aid FAQs – #4 “Overseas aid charities are fraudulent”
We’ve all been there – you’re walking down the high street and someone in a brightly coloured t-shirt stops you to ask for donations...
Foreign Aid FAQs – #3 “We send too much money abroad”
Given the significant amount of coverage which the UK foreign aid budget receives in the press, in political discussion, and in charities’ external communications,...
Foreign Aid FAQs – #2 “Foreign aid should be cut to pay for public services”
In any given episode of Question Time, especially during episodes in which the NHS funding crisis is discussed, there is a high chance that...
Foreign Aid FAQs – #1 “Charity begins at home”
The original meaning of this proverb was that a person’s first responsibility is for the needs of their own family and friends. However, nowadays...
Exit Priti Patel
International Development Secretary Priti Patel was forced to resign on 9th November. Has Theresa May made the right choice appointing Penny Mordaunt to replace...
Does short-term volunteering abroad do more harm than good?
This month the London International Development Centre (LIDC) with The Guardian Global Development Network hosted a talk on voluntourism as part of a series...
The impossible task: building popular support for immigration
Brexit has been built on the promise of immigration control. But as Theresa May prepares to trigger Article 50, could she be making a...
Achieving education for all
This week is International Education Week, a chance to observe progress made in global education, but barriers to a quality education remain both in...
I am not who you think I am
Rabia Nasimi explores the recent hardening of attitudes towards refugees and challenges preconceived ideas about why refugees come to the UK
Modern slavery: a vast industry, a global responsibility
On Anti-Slavery Day Anja Nielsen encourages us to consider how modern lifestyles may be contributing to slavery
Calais: aid in the digital age
With the closure of the Calais refugee camp imminent, Megan Kilmister writes about an innovative campaign helping bring aid into the digital age by...
A Defense of British Foreign Aid
In recent years, the attitude towards Britain’s vast foreign aid budget has been defined by growing derision and suspicion. In this article, Matthew Peacock...