How can international aid be more effective in reducing poverty?

In the fight against poverty, one of the primary goals of international aid should be job creation. Social entrepreneurship projects, vocational training programs, and microfinance support can initiate a sustainable development wave by helping local communities realize their potential. Ever heard the phrase "teach a person to fish"? Well, international aid can do just that by investing in programs that equip individuals with skills tailored for today's job scene. Also, In a world gone digital, knowing the ropes can open up entirely new avenues. International aid can roll out programs to teach digital skills,ensuring everyone gets a shot at the opportunities the modern job market offers.

Foreign aid is always benefitted to developing and underdeveloped countries. But presently the question arises what types of foreign aid help in reducing poverty? That is the matter of concern now to many underdeveloped countries. Aid sometimes work like exploitation for a UDCs. Foreign aid put many UDC and LDC into debt trap. My concern is, the concerned country’s Government should take decision why type flows they are accepting as recipients country.

Using the permanent capital aid approach: Having been a resident of a developing country in a continent of high poverty levels, my perspective on this is based on what I have experienced with respect to aid. The aiding that poor countries receive is temporary, leading to more future aid demand. I would suggest that instead of aiding poor nations with necessary basic needs that only aid them for a shorter period, aiders should employ a capital investment kind of approach whereby they establish businesses in affected areas using the area's comperative advantage. Plans maybe be put in place of how businesses can be a success in that particular area. This will lead to employment of people living in poverty, ceasing aid dependency.

International Aid can be useful in reducing poverty levels in the long-term if used correctly. whilst, it may be more tempting to use International Aid for food distribution to alleviate short-term poverty, using it instead to support local farmers and home growers, fund start-ups and infant industries, encourage exports and education. These strategies can help the people to make a living and support their families which will in turn help them move out of the poverty cycle.

I agree on all the above areas that aid can support. However at the state of affairs in many conflictual regions of the world an outmost need is how to influence policies that encourage institutional development and reform from within, promote good governance, fight against systemic corruption and lack of accountability and fight against poor participation of marginalized groups in wellbeing of societies. All of these areas if improved can reduce conflicts and regional wars, prevent violence and promote peace. We see this clearly in West Africa, or some parts of Subsaharan Africa region which although reach in resources, are poor in managing them.

Need/objective mismatch is an incredibly common problem, often exacerbated by rushed research into what the genuine problems are and the best ways to remedy them with aid. Donors who do not take the time to listen to recipient stakeholders and understand needs at a deep level can come across as well-intentioned but condescending — especially depending on specific cultural norms and identities.

It's time we pivot from endless aid to strengthening the accountability and capability of both private and public sectors. It's about agility and effectiveness in our approach to development. Let's invest in partnerships that empower rather than create dependence.

A significant factor that limits the ability of foreign aid to address poverty is corruption in recipient countries. Such corruption can lead to funds being misappropriated or steered to preferred beneficiaries. Donor agencies and countries can mitigate the cost of corruption by ensuring strict controls and oversight over how funds are used and disbursed.

Dependency and long-term sustainability can be considered as challenges in terms of aid allocation. The provision of aid can create a dependency mindset among recipient countries, which may lead to a lack of self-reliance and sustainable development. Therefore, it is important for aid initiatives to prioritize the enhancement of local institutions' capabilities and the promotion of long-term sustainable solutions that foster self-sufficiency, rather than perpetuating a cycle of dependence.

Uncoordinated donor programs by donor organizations thus resulting in competition instead of collaboration. This may have negative effect on the level of development in a particular setting. Aid must not be imposed but locally led and co-designed/co-created by the local actors. Time lags in measuring the impact and the unsustainability of projects where there is no political will by the host government to take over the programs/projects. The aspect of scaling up the programs can be challenging when the aid agenda is imposed on the recipients.

To add to the aforementioned, there are lots of opportunities that accrue to an economy that leverage on foreign aid. These may include, reduction in the level of poverty, reduction in infant mortality through access to health care and portable water, it can also serve as cost savings for education and infrastructural development.

Aid presents opportunities for fostering partnerships and collaborations between donor countries and recipients. By focusing on capacity building, technology transfer, and knowledge sharing, aid can empower nations to address the root causes of poverty and build resilient, self-sustaining economies.

Subsidies are the primary cause of poverty in all circumstances. If you want to reduce poverty internationally, then you end all foreign aid and make trade as free as possible.

So many opportunities from education and healthcare to infrastructures and innovation support. If the aim is for example to see 80% of the wonderful Indians in India living the freedoms and rights of wonderful Indians in Australia, UK and USA, and to see this mirrored in the South Globe across nations and countries we have so much work to do.

Une chose que j'ai trouvé utile est les financement des porteurs des projets notamment les jeunes des les zones les plus vulnérables

I recall that 30 years ago, clean water was often referred to as 'Finland clean water' in Vietnam. This acknowledged the sponsorship of the Finnish government, which established some of the first clean water facilities in Hanoi. In remote areas, sponsorships focused on four crucial needs encapsulated in a famous phrase 'electricity, road, school, and healthcare centers'. Vietnam has transcended its status as a poor nation. This transformation can be attributed in part to the invaluable support from international donors. Noteworthy examples include SIDA's support for Value Added Tax reform and the World Bank's assistance in SOE's reform. These helped Vietnam from a centralized economic policy to a more open and dynamic economy.

International Aid can be very critical in assisting different sectors of the economy e.g. the health sector in Zimbabwe. In Zimbabwe in 2022 the country recieved over $1.1 billion in Aid that was c10% of all foreign currency inflows into the country. The health sector has relied heavily on this aid especially when it comes to fighting specific diseases like Cholera, HIV- AIDS etc

The examples of wonderful work of aid is everywhere when it is accompanied with state building, rule of law and a culture of rights and freedoms: 1- The case for Poland 1995-2024: from infrastructures projects: water and wastewater projects, mobility, energy systems, business, etc 2- The case for Republic of Korea with top modern infrastructures while safeguarding respect for traditions and family. So many cases however of individual projects, that yes made a difference, but ultimately implemented with so many delays and costs overrun that would have definitely dwarfed their initial estimates of socio-economic rate of return.

the US Government initiatives such as PEPFAR, the work of Power Africa in the energy sector and Prosper Africa for trade and investment...

Broadly speaking, international aid can be divided into grants and assistance that stimulates project financing mechanisms that contribute to a country's development. In my work with infrastructure projects, grants tend to be a small part of the financing in developing countries. In my view, credit enhancement mechanisms provided by international development banks are more important. They make it possible to attract private capital into the country on a sustainable basis. These mechanisms increase the feasibility and attractiveness of large infrastructure projects for private investors, leading to long-term development impacts.

The behavioral economic aspects of how aid is granted are important. A popular thought over the past couple of decades has been that a level of cost-sharing in programs keeps more “skin in the game” and produces better outcomes through effects like adherence. However, more recent research (eg with insecticide treated nets for malaria prevention) shows that cost sharing may have a chilling effect on uptake and that providing interventions at no cost, while perhaps the overall adherence rate drops, produces a superior outcome through higher participation.

An increased percentage of aid should be allocated towards social and economic development projects, balanced with the percentage used on immediate consumption, depending on the needs of the country. Most aid is targetted solely on consumption needs, which focuses on the present. Whereas, development targetted initiatives will utilize aid to improve the socio-economic status of the disempowered in the medium-long run. International aid should be treated as an investment that seeks a return on investment (ROI) in the form of sustainable development in the recipient country. This will enable the recipient countries to cultivate their own sustenance while stimulating economic growth, improving the socio-economic profile of the country.

Ideally, Aid should not be a continuous avenue for supporting social projects. From the start, an effective approach to aid must be incorporated into the design of all these aid programs. All aid programs must be framed with an component to build capacity and resilience beyond the project for the social sector being supported. AID programs must therefore be properly structured to no only "throw" money at the problem but work with permanent local structures to inculcate practices that reduce chances of the social problem re-emerging. Special care must be taken to build systems for accountability and reporting

Major global food and water producers could directly distribute their products directly to poor population with no intermediaries, with only the support of the UN. The products could represent just 1% of their net after tax profits every year.

It all starts with building trust and believing we could succeed as a team, scrutinising and squeezing every aspect of the aid supply chain for synergies and benefits to the final user: the beneficiary country resident.

L'aide internationale revêt une importance cruciale. Bien que visant principalement à lutter contre la pauvreté, elle ne doit pas se limiter à des donations charitables. Il est essentiel de permettre aux pays défavorisés d'acquérir des compétences durables plutôt que de simplement fournir une aide alimentaire temporaire. Les solutions devraient englober l'investissement, le travail et l’entrepreneuriat. La pauvreté nécessite des solutions holistiques et inclusives, prenant en compte des variables telles que l'éducation, la santé, la justice et le respect des valeurs humaines. Les fonds devraient être dirigés vers des secteurs assurant le respect de la dignité humaine, contribuant ainsi à une vie décente pour les moins fortunés.

Aid can help mitigate poverty when it is borrowed for:~ ✅Fostering accessibility and capacity enhancement of resources at the local level ✅Financing debt crisis faced by government and PSEs to ensure efficient cooperation in provision of public services ✅Upgradation of technology for more autonomy and responsibility in business outcomes for sustained economic development

Ich habe beobachtet, dass Entwicklungszusammenarbeit sehr wirksam ist bei integralen Ansätzen, wie der Artikel sie nennt. Diese Erfahrung basiert zum Beispiel auf einem Programm für die Förderung der Bildung von Kindern und Jugendlichen in Medellín. Der Erfolg dieses Programms ist darauf zurückzuführen, dass die ganze Familie einbezogen wird, die Zielgruppe wird auch in Alltagsfragen beraten. So kommt es beispielsweise zu sehr wenigen Schul- und Ausbildungsabbrüchen aufgrund von Schwangerschaften von Jugendlichen. Auch erhielten die Familien während der Corona-Pandemie Esspakete. Dies bedeutet ein interdisziplinäres und umfassendes Engagement.

Monitoring and evaluation of the aid is paramount. Expections may vary from actual outcome of the same. Example of aid that deals direct with individual support of basic needs to poor people of a certain community. For instance to establish a centre where the community can access those needs which can be through rationing. I recommend donor should make sure that they fill the gaps found after the implementation of the project by sourcing additional funds at certain percentage of confidence level. After the sustainability of the project donors/recipient should have an eye to see possible 'children' that can be born by the parent project for multiplier effects.

International aid should be subject or project specific - beyond the interests of the donor, the peculiarities of the beneficiary should be evaluated, and interventions should be focused on creating structures that could support organic development.