"For God's Sake, Please Stop the Aid!"

[method77]

The Kenyan economics expert James Shikwati, 35, says that aid to Africa does more harm than good. The avid proponent of globalization spoke with SPIEGEL about the disastrous effects of Western development policy in Africa, corrupt rulers, and the tendency to overstate the AIDS problem.

SPIEGEL:

Mr. Shikwati, the G8 summit at Gleneagles is about to beef up the development aid for Africa...

Shikwati: ... for God's sake, please just stop.

SPIEGEL: Stop? The industrialized nations of the West want to eliminate hunger and poverty.

Shikwati: Such intentions have been damaging our continent for the past 40 years. If the industrial nations really want to help the Africans, they should finally terminate this awful aid. The countries that have collected the most development aid are also the ones that are in the worst shape. Despite the billions that have poured in to Africa, the continent remains poor.

SPIEGEL: Do you have an explanation for this paradox?

Shikwati: Huge bureaucracies are financed (with the aid money), corruption and complacency are promoted, Africans are taught to be beggars and not to be independent. In addition, development aid weakens the local markets everywhere and dampens the spirit of entrepreneurship that we so desperately need. As absurd as it may sound: Development aid is one of the reasons for Africa's problems. If the West were to cancel these payments, normal Africans wouldn't even notice. Only the functionaries would be hard hit. Which is why they maintain that the world would stop turning without this development aid.

SPIEGEL: Even in a country like Kenya, people are starving to death each year. Someone has got to help them.

Shikwati: But it has to be the Kenyans themselves who help these people. When there's a drought in a region of Kenya, our corrupt politicians reflexively cry out for more help. This call then reaches the United Nations World Food Program -- which is a massive agency of apparatchiks who are in the absurd situation of, on the one hand, being dedicated to the fight against hunger while, on the other hand, being faced with unemployment were hunger actually eliminated. It's only natural that they willingly accept the plea for more help. And it's not uncommon that they demand a little more money than the respective African government originally requested. They then forward that request to their headquarters, and before long, several thousands tons of corn are shipped to Africa ...

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[Malicious Intent]

Tough love.

In economics we were told that out of pound left over after administration/logisitc costs, 20p makes it to the intended destination and the other 80p to the corrupt who keep the countries poor. Not sure where the statistic comes from or of its accuracy (I can't see how it's measured), but it isn't too difficult to believe.

However, this guys solution is long term. How long before the corrupt run out of money? How long before a culture change of helping themselves? Should we just ignore Darfur (perhaps a bad example since apparently we are) because those 100,000s dying is necessary for the future of the region?

[method77]

If various organisations were left alone to do their job (action aid, doctors without frontiers etc) then everything would be cool. The money goes to the goverments and we know how those work. The american goverment stole Catrina foreign aid and that goverment is a western one. Imagine what goes on there.

[DudeAsInCool]

If various organisations were left alone to do their job (action aid, doctors without frontiers etc) then everything would be cool. The money goes to the goverments and we know how those work. The american goverment stole Catrina foreign aid and that goverment is a western one. Imagine what goes on there.

They didnt steal it--they left it to waste, unused

[method77]

Whatever. Didn't go where it was supposed to go, did it?

[DudeAsInCool]

Whatever. Didn't go where it was supposed to go, did it?

America's leadership are imbeciles

[Excrement_Cranium]

However, this guys solution is long term. How long before the corrupt run out of money? How long before a culture change of helping themselves? Should we just ignore Darfur (perhaps a bad example since apparently we are) because those 100,000s dying is necessary for the future of the region?

However long it takes, however many people it takes.

That is exactly what he is saying.

If you perpetuate the ruling class by funding their corruption, then you perpetuate their advantage over the poor, and leave the poor oppressed.

Western society revolutions have always come out of desperation and innovation.

[Hemoglobin Harry]

Kanye West was heard to comment ,"Bono doesn't care about Black people."

[method77]

America's leadership are imbeciles

imb... what?

[DudeAsInCool]

imb... what?

imbecile = morons