Reddit reviews Dead Aid: Why Aid Is Not Working and How There Is a Better Way for Africa
We found 16 Reddit comments about Dead Aid: Why Aid Is Not Working and How There Is a Better Way for Africa. Here are the top ones, ranked by their Reddit score.
Farrar Straus Giroux
>some have even suggested that if food waste were cut by as little as a quarter, it would be enough to eliminate famine from the planet completely if the food were distributed correctly.
Well, there you have it. 99% of the problem. Getting the the unused food to countries that need it.
Outside of that, food aid to Africa for example, really hasn't done anything to help the people of Africa outside of keeping them fed. And while on its face that sounds like a good thing, it really tends to lead to more suffering as it removes incentives for the fed people to move into more habitable areas or develop functioning economies.
The book Dead Aid goes into this pretty well and covers a lot of other factors. If you are interested in the subject there is a lot of material out there that suggests sending food aid to these regions hurts these populations more than it helps them even if you ignore the corruption that occurs in some countries as a result of tribes and warlords usurping the food to use as leverage.
Is waste a problem? Maybe. However, even if by some miracle we cut all waste and sent it to people that need it, it wouldn't really help them in the long run. Rather, it would perpetuate the same cycle of subsistence level survival the same aid we have been sending them has propped up for almost half a century.
If we want to really help the developing world we need to teach them how to sustain long term agriculture growth and political stability so these countries can develop market economies and serve themselves. The first world does the third world a disservice by providing these communities with free food that will ultimately undercut the market price of food in the local economy and put local agriculture out of business. The IMF and other sources of income also contribute to the problem through punitive interest rates on loans to the same developing countries, but that is a story for another day.
> There's several notable economists that I've heard are sceptical about foreign aid being useful
Yep. Deaton, Moyo, and Acemolgu to name a few. Overseas Development Aid (typically administered in the form of intergovernmental transfers) typically does vastly more harm than good. Not only does it precipitate adverse economic outcomes, it also weakens states and subverts democracies (see Mali/Azawad). To be fair though, I can only really speak to the African experience.
Add the insights from Dead Aid and it is just painful to see how from every side of Western involvement in Africa has only lead to greater pain and suffering.
Woodrow Wilson should be regarded as one of the most evil men in history (as much as anyone deserves such a title). His "people have a right to self determination" has been justification for some of the most aggressive political and economic destabilization imaginable.
You couldn't plan a way to make people more impoverished than the way the west tries to "help".
If you want to read about the colossal failure of foreign aid, read Dead Aid. It's a stunning book.
I am skeptical of a lot of aid (not all) and from what I have read foreign aid it is a very mixed bag at best. I have yet to read Dambisa Mayo's book Dead Aid, from what I understand her work is well regarded; what does r/neoliberal think of the book?
You get more of what you subsidize, never less. Sounds horrible until you think about all the poverty, hunger, death, and pain that we have multiplied. We have literally taught these people to wait for aid or death and do nothing about it. Humans only evolve when we literally have to, unfortunately.
It took a black woman writing about the topic before it wasn't called racist: https://www.amazon.com/Dead-Aid-Working-Better-Africa/dp/0374532125
Dead Aid by Dambisa Moyo examines the effect of foreign aid on Africa.
Excellent (and very readable) book -
http://www.amazon.com/Dead-Aid-Working-Better-Africa/dp/0374532125
"Dead Aid" by Dambisa Moyo is a fantastic book on this subject and specifically its impacts in Africa. https://www.amazon.com/Dead-Aid-Working-Better-Africa/dp/0374532125
The Bottom Billion
Dead Aid
Neither deal directly with sweatshops but the subject is related.
And you can google some other information, written by people who study this stuff professionally, in defense of them if you want a better understanding of why they exist, their benefits and their faults, etc.
What gets me is that this person doesn't understand that in many cases, the African governments don't put much money toward building infrastructure, schools, or even institutional capacity. So donors and NGOs fill this void because they're the only ones willing/able to build the schools and other things.
He has a point when he says it'd be better if they could build institutional capacity, however in many cases African governments would rather devote their few resources to maintaining personal power than developing economically or institutionally. There are certainly things wrong with aid, and it can be seen as enabling African governments in their corruption.
But at the root of the problem, its the shit leaders in Africa, none of whom are white, that holds back development. They're the ones that are closest to the people and culture, and could use their societal contexts to begin a development process that best benefits their people, but they don't. Does it then surprise you that when western donors come in, knowing the western way, they try to implement those methods, even though the Africans may not be willing or able to "go western", and then despite minor successes, improve little? The governments of Africa are just as much, if not moreso, to blame for the current state of Africa than anything the west is doing today. In fact, institutional capacity in Africa has been shown to have declined since independence, before Africa's ruling class had a chance to create the kleptocratic, patrimonial, and all around corrupt, personal-rule states. That's why many Africans who get advanced degrees in the West, stay there; of those who return to work within the government, they either leave for the private or NGO sector or assimilate into the corrupt system, there is no room for change from within because the system itself is only perpetuated by further corruption.
It's foolish to look at the problems in Africa and assume that it's all the fault of colonialism and continued western aid, sure colonialism did a lot to fuck things up, but in the end the continued economic stagnation of the African continent is largely the fault of its leadership, its PoC leadership that prioritises power maintenance over economic development. As misguided as the West can be when it tries to help, at least they're actually doing something for the people of Africa. If he wants actual information about development in Africa, I'd suggest Dead Aid by Dembisa Moyo or African Economies by Nicolas Van de Walle.
>I rarely ever say this, but this is a crazy enough assertion that I'm asking you to prove it.
I'm not even sure it's something I need to 'prove', because history has done that for me over and over again.
If you want to get into specifics about foreign aid, there are some books and videos on the subject:
>I look around and I can't help but see a huge wealth gap.
One can't see a 'wealth gap' or 'inequality' due to its abstract nature, one can only read or hear about it. However, most people only care about localized inequality.
Regardless, what do the rich people in America have to do with poverty in Africa? Why should something "be done" about it?
>it seems like the lack of an FDA type group
You don't imagine there is profit in private regulation?
There must be, or else private regulatory agencies wouldn't currently exist.
This book argues pretty strongly against aide . https://www.amazon.com/Dead-Aid-Working-Better-Africa/dp/0374532125#productDescription_secondary_view_div_1481963244911
FWIW I disagree. Also Bill Gates funds my job and I believe it has the potential to bring about good things so I'm pretty bias.
No conspiracy stories here. I don't have a tin foil hat.
Yes, certain assistance in times of famine/catastrophe/etc. is great, as well as certain programs to empower people or stop gender-based violence. But the long-range plan is to keep an aid recipient caught in either a debt trap or work to ensure they don't develop their economy.
There is evidence-based research that shows what occurs and rational people who have studied this. Here's a book you should check out.
https://www.amazon.com/Dead-Aid-Working-Better-Africa/dp/0374532125
You aren't wrong. Many medical mission trips are a detriment to the community unless they adhere to the guidelines. This is true of anyone who intends to provide healthcare to communities for a brief period and then leave, does nothing to help create a stable system of care. It creates dependency and takes away from the distressed community and their ability to build local healthcare infrastructure. This is a good read by an Oxford/Harvard trained economist who argues against any form of aid to impoverished nations.
https://www.amazon.com/Dead-Aid-Working-Better-Africa/dp/0374532125#
If you volunteer, as a preclinical student, you would be placed in a logistical or education program. These roles are encouraged by the WHO, because you are directed by the host nation. When I worked in Malawi, I did so at the pleasure of the Minister of Health under the direction of Dr. Mwanswambo and went where told. Dont discount all missions. There are ethical ways you can contribute.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5803894/
I'll just assume you're a retard instead of an operative:
https://news.vice.com/story/the-u-s-is-waging-a-massive-shadow-war-in-africa-exclusive-documents-reveal
https://www.amazon.com/Dead-Aid-Working-Better-Africa/dp/0374532125
https://www.amazon.com/Confessions-Economic-Hit-John-Perkins/dp/0452287081