Naked Economics Chapter 33

2601 Words11 Pages
Chapter 33 – Aid and indebtedness Aid is any assistance that is given to a country that would not have been provided through normal market forces. Aid may be provided to developing countries because: * Help people affected by war or natural disasters * Help achieve economic development * To create or strengthen political or strategic alliances. * To fill in the savings gap thus encouraging investment * To improve the quality of human resources * To improve levels of technology * To fund specific development projects Official aid: organized by government or an official government agency. Unofficial aid: organized by a non-government organization (NGO) such as Oxfam. 1) Humanitarian aid * Aid given to alleviate…show more content…
The long-term provision of large quantities of food may force down domestic prices and make matters worse for domestic farmers. It could be considered better for farmers to have a reduction in the subsidies given to farmers in the developed countries. 6. Continued dependency on aid means there is little incentive to be innovative and people develop a welfare mentality. 7. Some argue that aid is focused on industrialization causing a greater gap in incomes and living standards between those in that sector and those in the traditional agricultural sector. 8. Aid is often available only if the country agrees to adopt certain economic policies and these often reflect the Washington Consensus policies that emphasize free market principles of liberalization, deregulation and privatization to promote economic growth. These policies might be more in the interest of MNCs and the developed countries rather than the developing countries. 9. People in developed countries are beginning to suffer from “aid weariness” and think that the problems in their own economies may be more important than in others so this may start to reduce the flows of aid. 10. Loan repayments on financial aid may lead to massive problems of indebtedness for developing…show more content…
The company was founded in 1995 and is a charity organisation. It aims to reduce poverty, suffering, and injustice. Inward-orientated (Import substitution) – Inward-oriented growth strategy. States that developing countries should, wherever possible, produce goods domestically rather than import them. Outward-orientated (Export-led) – An outward-oriented growth strategy, based on openness and increased international trade. Growth is achieved by concentrating on increasing exports and export revenue, as a leading factor in the aggregate demand of the country. Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) – They plan and implement specifically targeted projects in developing counties and they act as lobbyists to try to influence public policy in areas such as poverty reduction, workers’ rights, human rights and the environment. MNCs (Multinational corporations) – A corporation that has its facilities and other assets in at least one country other than its home country. Such companies have offices and/or factories in different countries and usually have a centralized head office where they co-ordinate global management. TNCs (Transnational corporations) – those corporations which operate in more than one country or nation at a
Open Document