Mike, This was very interesting to hear, because it show how systematic it was/is. I had some insight in foreign aid from Sweden and some other donor countries, which have 10 to 20 times higher part of GDP than US. One of the holy principles is that it should be spent on the best value for the recipient. Completely opposite to US, who have strings attached, that will ensure the spending in US and to the benefit of US suppliers. It is also some fudging going on with some parts of war material included in the US foreign aid numbers.
I did not know that it was systematic down to the state level. LOL Hakan At 15:42 06/06/2006, you wrote: >When I worked for a US Gov't aid agency, one of my first web jobs was to >put together an online map showing hoe US aid benefited each state so >the representatives could use it to show that most of the money flowed >back to the US. > >The agency commisioned a survey: Most Americans believed that 10% or >more their tax dollars were spent on foreign aid. When asked the amount >they thought was reasonable it was between 5-6%. The actual amount then >(the 90's) was less than 1/2 of 1%. > >The key work with Easterly is former. Too radical. > >As I have said before, I am not an economist but grew up in a house >where development economics was discussed endlessly - my father is a PhD in >economics and was considered radical in that he thought top-down foreign >aid was nuts. He told me one of his semilnal momnets was when, as a >freshly minted PhD and very young professor, a student from India got up >during a lecture and asked him: "Well, what do you think we in the >developing world think of this?" >He didn't know. That's not what they taught in graduate school in the >late 50's. To his credit he set out to find out. I benefited >enormously from this. Our house was usually full of students of all >lands. > >His latest book is very interesting, though not orthodox: >Achieving Broad-Based Sustainable Development: Governance, Environment, >and Growth With Equity - James H Weaver, Mike Rock > >In my experience during my second stint in the aid game, our projects >were all devised by the local population in a select group of African >countries We had a set a metrics - how long has the group been >together, have they already had some success, do they have a business >plan and so on. Tweaking this was an ongoing process. Even with this >my informal feeling was that about 1/3 sailed, 1/3 failed and 1/3 just >bumped along. > >-Mike > >Hakan Falk wrote: > > >Keith, > > > >Looking at is this way, we can be happy that "US aid" per capita is > >much lower than many other developed economies. It is apart from > >this, a shame to use the little that they give, in the way they do it. > > > >Hakan > > > >At 17:39 05/06/2006, you wrote: > > > > > >>>Well, I'm by no means an expert, but I have worked quite a bit in the > >>>"foreign aid" field. > >>>It wasn't a total failure by any means, but I'd say out failures > >>>outweighed our successes. > >>> > >>> > >>On the other hand, I suppose you could say that very much of it is a > >>great success, since so much "foreign aid" is unabashedly aimed at > >>benefiting US interests, like other countries' "tied" aid. > >> > >> > >> > >>>My father, who is a PhD in Development Economics, and was known as a > >>>radical for such dangerous ideas > >>>as arguing that money is not the only metric that can be used to > >>>determine development, once observed: > >>>"The US has never realized that you can't just go in and impose > prosperity" > >>> > >>> > >>Yeah. Or democracy, eh? > >> > >> > >> > >>>In addition to the articles below I recommend the work of Joseph > >>>Stiglitz and William Easterly. > >>> > >>> > >>Both former World Bank officials. > >> > >>http://snipurl.com/rde2 > >>biofuel - Search results for 'stiglitz' > >> > >>http://snipurl.com/rde4 > >>biofuel - Search results for 'Easterly' > >> > >>Anup Shah gives a good overview, as usual. > >> > >>Best > >> > >>Keith > >> > >> > >> > >> > >>>-Weaver > >>> > >>>Keith Addison wrote: > >>> > >>> > >>> > >>>>See also: > >>>> > >>>>http://snipurl.com/rcij > >>>>[Biofuel] Bushfood > >>>> > >>>>http://snipurl.com/rcik > >>>>[Biofuel] Myth: More US aid will help the hungry > >>>> > >>>>http://snipurl.com/rcim > >>>>Re: [Biofuel] US Foreign aid > >>>>Food Dumping [Aid] Maintains Poverty > >>>> > >>>>http://snipurl.com/rcig > >>>>[Biofuel] The US and Foreign Aid Assistance > >>>> > >>>>http://snipurl.com/rcih > >>>>[Biofuel] Famines as Commercial Opportunity > >>>> > >>>>http://snipurl.com/rcii > >>>>[Biofuel] Famine As Commerce > >>>> > >>>>http://snipurl.com/rcin > >>>>[Biofuel] Inequality in wealth > >>>> > >>>>--------- > >>>> > >>>>New at Anup Shah's "Global Issues" web site. > >>>>http://www.globalissues.org > >>>> > >>>>Home > >>>>* Trade-Related Issues > >>>>* Sustainable Development > >>>>* US Foreign Aid > >>>> > >>>>Is foreign aid failing because of the lack of accountability of > >>>>donors as well as problems in recipient countries? > >>>> > >>>>Much is said of the corruption, lack of democracy and other ills in > >>>>developing countries as the reasons for aid and other forms of > >>>>generous assistance never working. But, could it also be that the > >>>>type of foreign aid (the conditions and prescriptions tied to the > >>>>aid) is also a problem? Furthermore, there is very little > >>>>accountability to the poor countries if the prescriptions and > >>>>policies themselves are not the right ones and good intentions fail. > >>>>This and other issues are explored further in the updated foreign aid > >>>>section. > >>>> > >>>>http://www.globalissues.org/TradeRelated/Debt/USAid.asp > >>>> > >>>>Governments Cutting Back on Promised Responsibilities > >>>> > >>>>* Rich Nations Agreed at UN to 0.7% of GNP To Aid > >>>>* Almost all rich nations fail this obligation > >>>>* Some donate many dollars, but are low on GNI percent > >>>>* Aid beginning to increase but still way below obligations > >>>> > >>>>* Foreign Aid Numbers in Charts and Graphs > >>>> > >>>>* Side note on private contributions > >>>>* Side Note on Private Remittances > >>>>* Adjusting Aid Numbers to Factor Private Contributions, and more > >>>>* Ranking the Rich based on Commitment to Development > >>>>* Private donations and philanthropy > >>>>* Aid money is actually way below what has been promised > >>>> > >>>>* Are numbers the only issue? > >>>> > >>>>* The Changing Definition of Aid Reveals a much Deeper Decline than > >>>>What Numbers Alone Can Show > >>>>* Aid is Actually Hampering Development > >>>> > >>>>* Aid has been a foreign policy tool to aid the donor not the recipient > >>>> > >>>>* Aid And Militarism > >>>>* Aid Money Often Tied to Various Restrictive Conditions > >>>>* More Money Is Transferred From Poor Countries to Rich, Than From > >>>> > >>>> > >>>Rich To Poor > >>> > >>> > >>>>* Aid Amounts Dwarfed by Effects of First World Subsidies, Third > >>>>World Debt, Unequal Trade, etc > >>>>* But aid could be beneficial > >>>> > >>>>* Trade and Aid > >>>>* Improving Economic Infrastructure > >>>>* Use aid to Empower, not to Prescribe > >>>>* Rich donor countries and aid bureaucracies are not accountable > >>>>* Democracy-building is fundamental, but harder in many > >>>> > >>>> > >>developing countries > >> > >> > >>>>* Failed foreign aid and continued poverty: well-intentioned > >>>>mistakes, calculated geopolitics, or a mix? > >>>> > >>>> > >>_______________________________________________ > >>Biofuel mailing list > >>Biofuel@sustainablelists.org > >>http://sustainablelists.org/mailman/listinfo/biofuel_sustainablelists.org > >> > >>Biofuel at Journey to Forever: > >>http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html > >> > >>Search the combined Biofuel and Biofuels-biz list archives > (50,000 messages): > >>http://www.mail-archive.com/biofuel@sustainablelists.org/ > >> > >> > > > > > > > >_______________________________________________ > >Biofuel mailing list > >Biofuel@sustainablelists.org > >http://sustainablelists.org/mailman/listinfo/biofuel_sustainablelists.org > > > >Biofuel at Journey to Forever: > >http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html > > > >Search the combined Biofuel and Biofuels-biz list archives (50,000 > messages): > >http://www.mail-archive.com/biofuel@sustainablelists.org/ > > > > > > > > >_______________________________________________ >Biofuel mailing list >Biofuel@sustainablelists.org >http://sustainablelists.org/mailman/listinfo/biofuel_sustainablelists.org > >Biofuel at Journey to Forever: >http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html > >Search the combined Biofuel and Biofuels-biz list archives (50,000 messages): >http://www.mail-archive.com/biofuel@sustainablelists.org/ _______________________________________________ Biofuel mailing list Biofuel@sustainablelists.org http://sustainablelists.org/mailman/listinfo/biofuel_sustainablelists.org Biofuel at Journey to Forever: http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html Search the combined Biofuel and Biofuels-biz list archives (50,000 messages): http://www.mail-archive.com/biofuel@sustainablelists.org/
