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 – #7 “I’d rather give them the money myself”
Widespread concerns about dodgy and unscrupulous overseas aid charities not sending donations where they’re supposed to have led some people to instead express a...
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...
Bilateral versus Multilateral Aid
In this article Megan Kilmister discusses bilateral and multilateral aid, looking at the differences between the two, and the arguments for and against these...
The Luxuries of the Department for International Development
The Department for International Developments budget remains at 0.7% of gross national income. In this article Katie Wand questions whether the current checks and...
A Defence of Foreign Aid: Why we need Global Development
During a time of austerity, Britain still continues to allocate 0.7% to foreign aid. Dean Hochlaf defends the target. Last month, flooding devastated widespread...
Afghanistan after 14 years of Foreign Aid: sustained developments or continued challenges?
Ashraf Ghani, the President of Afghanistan once said, “Economics taught in most of the elite universities are practically useless in my context. My country...
Relief in Nepal; an uphill struggle
On the 25th April, an earthquake measuring 7.9 on the Richter scale struck Nepal, in the nation’s deadliest natural disaster since 1934. Subsequent aftershocks...
Journalists and NGOs- working better together?
In this article, Lorraine Patch problematises the relationship between development agencies and media outlets, considering their differences, and exploring how they can work better together. ...
The Politics of Band Aid
Does the backlash against Band-Aid centre attention upon the politics of celebrity activism? Charlotte Fraser looks at the role it has in detracting attention away from broader, structural...
Ebola: ‘Africa’s problem’
How does the developed world respond to crises in the developing world? Sabrina Marsh explores the current Ebola outbreak in light of inequality, international aid...
Aid to Somerset: Can we do better than comparing vulnerable populations?
ON SATURDAY, THE DAILY MAIL USED ITS FRONT PAGE TO SUPPORT CLAIMS FROM SOME MPS THAT OVERSEAS AID SHOULD BE DIVERTED TO VICTIMS OF...
Cash transfers: global development’s “quiet revolution”
Cash transfer programmes empower poor people in developing countries to take control over their own lives. DiA blogger Hannah Loryman explores why they’re so...