Yesterday we spoke about a chapter from the book White Mans Burden which looked at aid and the method in which aid has been disbursed and utilised in the world. Throughout the conversation as I stood in front of the class and leading the discussion I was amazed at how many different strong and well thought opinions were in one classroom!
I listened as my classmates pointed out how aid has been used in some governments in a corrupt manner making it difficult for the country to grow (which is the purpose of the aid) and how it might be unfair to ask countries like the USA to give grants to the developing world when the USA is at its highest debt ceiling to date. On the other end of the argument spectrum I listened to how some countries in the developing world had effective governments that managed to utilise the little or no aid they have received to make their country work.
The discussion left us with many questions like should there be aid at all, or are small specific grants effective and a myriad of other questions that perhaps we might not be able to answer this semester but later in life as we progress.
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ReplyDeleteThe conversation from the chapter in White Mans Burden was a very productive conversation as Tinashe mentioned. One of the ideas that struck me the most was having private companies manage the aid and build in the countries in need of aid. I believe it is a very successful method to get things done in countries with unstable governments and corruption. A lot of people dislike the idea because residents might feel like they are being taken over by the private company. But I think if methods as such have successful results, they should definitely be applied more often despite of the controversy.
ReplyDeleteThe lingering question about providing foreign aid or small grants was also very appealing. But to answer Tinashe, I believe aid is helpful, but too much of it is not. Once the people that receive the aid realize that the foreign aid they are receiving is continuous, that eliminates all incentives to even try to work or push forward. Technically the aid is to give a push to the deprived society, not to spoil them or make them solely dependent on aid.
I thought that our class discussion during Tinashe’s presentation was informative. I found it interesting that in many cases aid in actually weakened economies and lead to greater poverty in many Developing Nations. Personally, I believe that these ineffective aid policies are the result of poor planning and naïve expectations. Without palpable economic reform, destitute nations such as Uganda will never successfully repay high interest loans within a ten year time frame. Such loans are ineffective for two reasons: they give large amounts of money to instable governments without adequately supervising projects, and they increase the indebtedness of poverty stricken nations. Consequently, such aid puts Developing Nations in deeper deficits requiring for more future aid towards poverty reduction.
ReplyDeleteI believe that the most effective way to solve this issue is through microfinancing. Microfinancing (also called microloaning) is a modern approach that promotes solitary lending to consumers and self-employed clients. This approach is effective because it gives impoverished citizens credit on a small scale and allows them to purchase infrastructure and necessities that they cannot afford on their own. I believe that this approach is the most prudent way to attack poverty because of its efficiency. ACCION International, one of America’s largest microfinancing institutions, has provided 120 million dollars of microloans to impoverished citizens with an over 90 percent repayment rate. The best aspect of microfinancing is that it allows poor citizens to create business through small loans. These newly created businesses will eventually provide jobs for others to create more productive economies worldwide. Based on the history of our poorest developing nations it is unlikely that they will be able to resolve their many deficiencies alone. They need aid that goes directly to citizens and will create tangible solutions to poverty in a short term time frame. Based on the practicality and effectiveness of microfinancing projects it is currently the best way to abate global poverty.