Levels Of Official Development Assistance Research Articles

Think globally, act locally? Domestic constraints on foreign aid

Some democratic governments prefer a more ambitious and generous development policy than others. These governments hold stronger preferences for realizing the sustainable development goals defined by the UN, including the eradication of poverty, the right to education, the protection of human rights, and the safeguarding of the environment in developing countries. Yet, the extent to which democratic governments can realize their preferred development policies varies significantly. In this article, I analyze the discrepancies between governments’ development policy preferences and the level of official development assistance (ODA) they provide. On the theoretical side, I analyze governments’ discretion to increase their level of ODA. Specifically, I argue that unified governments that face weak institutional constraints find it easier to transfer their ambitious development policy preferences into higher levels of ODA. On the empirical side, I study the level of ODA in 33 OECD countries over a period of 23 years. Analyzing speeches at the UN General Assembly, I apply an innovative operationalization of governments’ concern for global development. My findings support the argument that governments’ discretion in domestic politics facilitates an increase of ODA.

Competitive prospects of graduate program on the integration of ICT superiority, higher education, and international aid

Korea overcame the Asian financial crisis (1997–1998) with its governmental policies of informatization and the promotion of the information and communications technology (ICT) industry. It is a nation that has switched its international position from a recipient of international aid to a member of the OECD Development Assistance Committee (DAC). However, the level of official development assistance (ODA) by Korea is lower than the average of OECD DAC members. As a situational alternative, this study introduced a global information and telecommunication technology program (ITTP) that seems to integrate education on Korea’s superiority in ICT infrastructure and the industry with specialized ODA. In particular, this study analyzed the competitive environment of the ITTP by examining its structural strengths and weaknesses through an analysis of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT). And then, this research illustrated the relationship diagram of major stakeholders and their impact using Porter’s five forces approach. Our analysis suggests that the ITTP needs to specialize in an “ICT for development” (ICT4D) program in the competitive environment of Asian-Pacific universities by combining education with techno-economic infrastructure projects in developing countries.

The Implications of Brexit for the Caribbean’s Future Relationship with Britain and the EU

The UK Brexit referendum to leave the EU has created concerns internationally, particularly for countries that have formal trade, aid and investment treaties with the EU and none with Britain alone. The notion of a Commonwealth Free Trade Agreement (FTA) is a non-starter and would bring no benefits to the Caribbean. But, Britain outside the EU deprives the Caribbean of a sympathetic voice on a range of issues, including financial services, and alters the level of official development assistance that will be available from remaining EU members that have no historical relationship with the English-speaking Caribbean. The importance of the UK as a market for their goods and services make it imperative for Caribbean countries to start early ‘talks’ with London so as not to be crowded out by FTAs that the UK will conclude with countries larger and richer than the Caribbean. At the same time, Brexit provides an opportunity for the Caribbean to revisit its unsatisfactory Economic Partnership Agreement with the EU. Caribbean countries need to determine their objectives and take early initiatives to realise them.

EMBEDDING THE VULNERABLE INTO THE MILLENNIUM DEVELOPMENT GOALS: SOCIAL PROTECTION IN POVERTY REDUCTION STRATEGY PAPERS

AbstractSocial protection and equity are missing elements of the Millennium Development Goals. Both are essential to redress the situation of the most vulnerable. This study provides a comprehensive review of social protection packages in Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers and devises an index to evaluate the extent of a country's level of social protection in its development strategy. The findings show that the social protection agenda in Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers is more pronounced in countries with higher levels of income and lower levels of ethnic diversity and that social assistance packages are more aligned to higher levels of official development assistance and governance. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Taking stock of Myanmar’s progress toward the health-related Millennium Development Goals: current roadblocks, paths ahead

Myanmar is a developing country with considerable humanitarian needs, rendering its pursuit of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) an especially high priority. Yet progress to date remains under-examined on key fronts. Particularly within the three health-related MDGs (MDGs 4, 5, and 6), the limited data reported point to patchy levels of achievement. This study was undertaken to provide an overview and assessment of Myanmar’s progress toward the health-related MDGs, along with possible solutions for accelerating health-related development into 2015 and beyond. The review highlights off-track progress in the spheres of maternal and child health (MDGs 4 and 5). It also shows Myanmar’s achievements toward MDG 6 targets – in the areas of HIV/AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis. Such achievements are especially notable in that Myanmar has been receiving the lowest level of official development assistance among all of the least developed countries in Asia. However, to make similar progress in MDGs 4 and 5, Myanmar needs increased investment and commitment in health. Toward moving forward with the post-2015 development agenda, Myanmar’s government also needs to take the lead in calling for attention from the World Health Organization and its global development partners to address the stagnation in health-related development progress within the country. In particular, Myanmar’s government should invest greater efforts into health system strengthening to pave the road to universal health coverage.

Foreign Direct Investment as an Instrument for promoting Economic Development in Bangladesh

A healthy financial sector is very much crucial for economic growth, especially for economies like Bangladesh. Because, growth in Bangladesh must come largely from exports and its enterprises must, therefore, be internationally competitive. But unfortunately, Bangladesh has a financial system in which borrowers fail to repay loans, foreclosure is almost unheard of, and the government has to bail out banks. However, the Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), the most powerful weapon for accelerating economic development in Bangladesh. To attain an economic growth rate in the seven to eight percent range, investment has to be increased significantly, Because of declining levels of official development assistance in recent years and inadequate domestic savings, FDI presents opportunities for overcoming domestic resource constraints. The Board of investment (BOI) was created as market mechanism where investors can cut through red-tape associated with foreign trade and business start-ups. FDI basically helps to fill-up the capital gap and shortage of a country. Foreign Direct Investment is one of the vital forces to boost up the economy. In this study paper I would like to draw a current scenario of Foreign Direct Investment in Bangladesh. In this regard I present the most updated data, avoid the uncompleted data and use the best judgment at the time of presenting the data to better knowing the current trend about the Foreign Direct Investment in Bangladesh. The benefits of FDI in terms of physical capital formation, transfer of technology, and know-how are sufficient to justify sustaining these flows.  Capital controls are not the answer to a rising flow of FDI. Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) will help the country in further developing infrastructures, creating more employment, developing capacity, enhancing skills of the labour force of the host country through transferring technological knowledge and managerial capability. To ensure that resulting payments liabilities remain within the country’s debt-servicing capacity, it is essential to develop an effective non-intrusive reporting and monitoring system the main ingredients of which are presented in the study.  JEL Classification Code:  G11, O24

Private foundations, philanthropy, and partnership in education and development: mapping the terrain

There has been increasing interest on the role of private foundations in education finance and delivery. We argue that this is due to a macro-policy context of stagnating levels of official development assistance for education and an uncritical acceptance of a logic of neutrality and the efficiency and effectiveness of of partnerships and philanthropy. This paper reports on the results of a literature review on private foundations in education and development. It found significant contestation against the claims of neutrality, efficiency, effectiveness. It also identifies salient methodological and substantive issues for the development of a research agenda on the issue.

Countdown to 2015: tracking donor assistance to maternal, newborn, and child health

Timely reliable data on aid flows to maternal, newborn, and child health are essential for assessing the adequacy of current levels of funding, and to promote accountability among donors for attainment of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) for child and maternal health. We provide global estimates of official development assistance (ODA) to maternal, newborn, and child health in 2003 and 2004, drawing on data reported by high-income donor countries and aid agencies to the Organisation for Economic Development and Cooperation. ODA was tracked on a project-by-project basis to 150 developing countries. We applied a standard definition of maternal, newborn, and child health across donors, and included not only funds specific to these areas, but also integrated health funds and disease-specific funds allocated on a proportional distribution basis, using appropriate factors. Donor spending on activities related to maternal, newborn, and child health was estimated to be US1990 million dollars in 2004, representing just 2% of gross aid disbursements to developing countries. The 60 priority low-income countries that account for most child and newborn deaths received 1363 million dollars, or 3.1 dollars per child. Across recipient countries, there is a positive association between mortality and ODA per head, although at any given rate of mortality for children aged younger than 5 years or maternal mortality, there is significant variation in the amount of ODA per person received by developing countries. The current level of ODA to maternal, newborn, and child health is inadequate to provide more than a small portion of the total resources needed to reach the MDGs for child and maternal health. If commitments are to be honoured, global aid flows will need to increase sharply during the next 5 years. The challenge will be to ensure a sufficient share of these new funds is channelled effectively towards the scaling up of key maternal, newborn, and child health interventions in high priority countries.

“Our Poverty Is a World Full of Dreams:” Reforming the World Bank

Under what circumstances do international organizations change their operations and routines? Examining the recent Strategic Compact reform initiative, we argue that change in the World Bank is triggered by a complex set of factors stemming from changed interests and norms in the Bank's environment. The process of change, however, is some thing shaped by organizational culture, which is defined as the deeply embedded ideologies, norms, and routines that govern the expectations and behavior of bureaucratic staff. This organizational culture represents the internal friction that propels change in a slow, path-dependent direc tion that produces outcomes that are not necessarily congruent with the preferences of the organization's powerful shareholders or the intentions of internal reform initiators. Keywords: World Bank, Strategic Com pact, organizational culture, organizational reform, James Wolfensohn. Perhaps the most succinct description of the World Bank in this past decade is that of an international organization that is over stretched and underloved.2 The Bank is simultaneously faced with declining levels of official development assistance, a rapidly expanding development agenda, and increasing competition from pri vate capital and other aid agencies. This is compounded by mounting criticism from vigilant and vocal nonstate actors, which is compelling the international organization (IO) to adopt new policies that hold it to an unprecedented level of transparency and accountability. Internally, a series of scathing evaluations of the Bank's past performance indicted many of the bureaucratic policies and practices that contributed to its declining effectiveness.3 Thus, when James Wolfensohn entered office as president in June 1995, one of his first acts was to proclaim his inten tion to fundamentally change the institution.4 The response was an ambitious U.S.$250 million, thirty-month reform initiative named the Strategic Compact, a self-described renewal plan aimed at reestab lishing the Bank's preeminent position as the world's leading develop ment agency by instigating a massive transformation in the way the organization defines and pursues its core mission of alleviating world poverty. 369

Sweden: 2003 Article IV Consultation--Staff Report; Staff Statement; Public Information Notice on the Executive Board Discussion; and Statement by the Executive Director for Sweden

The Swedish economy recovered from the crisis, assisted by a sizable fiscal stimulus. Executive Directors commended the fiscal and monetary frameworks, skillful and proactive management of monetary policy of the Riksbank, the soundness of the financial system, and stressed the need to accelerate structural reforms. They welcomed the steps to strengthen the financial system, according to the Financial Sector Assessment Program recommendations. They appreciated the authorities for exemplary efforts to promote open trade policies, and for the high level of official development assistance.