Aid Effectiveness

Aid, in the neo-liberal framework cannot be effective, and it can rarely put positive impact on the ground for which it is supposed to work for the development of the poor people in particular. It is also important that developing countries devise their own means to maximise utilisation of aid effectively denouncing the imposed conditions and at the same time hold lenders and recipient overnments accountable to the people. And for effective aid, there must be the real commitments to realise ownership, harmonisation, alignment and mutual accountability that have been emphasised in the Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness, writes Ahmed Swapan Mahmud

Speakers at a discussion yesterday said that international capitalist mode of productions, speculative capital, unjust and ndemocratic role of International Financial Institutions (IFIs) and multinational corporations are the major causes of recent financial crisis. The discussion titled `IFIs are the Major Barriers to Development Effectiveness: Linking Financial Crisis to Food, Debt and Climate Change' has been held at the Cirdap auditorium, Dhaka on 16 October. The discussion was moderated by Ahmed Swapan Mahmud, executive director of VOICE while eminent economist and also a teacher of Dhaka University Prof. Abu Ahmed, eminent leader of Workers Party of Bangladesh Haider Akber Khan Rono, economist, leading economist Dr. Piash Karim, renowned leader general secretary of Biplabi Workers Party Saiful Haq spoke as panel discussants.

Bangladesh is passing through multi-faceted challenges in the recent past propagated by its economic depression due to deregulation of the state machinery dictated from International Financial Institutions. Commoner's life and livelihood is highly suppressed from inflation, unemployment and unprecedented risks. Triple attack of food, fuel and financial crisis on the global economy is also affecting peoples' daily life as the country is a net food importing LDC and its remittance mostly comes from by exporting garments and frozen foods along with low skilled manpower.  Bangladesh needs increased investment in food, griculture, employment generation along with spending in basic services. But the govt. can not invest more as they have
to pay back more than USD 1500 million for debt servicing per annum to World Bank, IMF, Asian Development Bank and to other bi-lateral donors, which is more than 15% of it's national budget. Besides new loan programs in the name of Multi Donor Trust Fund proposed to be managed by World Bank will trap its citizens to new debt burden. Massive awareness needs to be created to
challenge this undemocratic venture of the Bank.

Thursday 16 October 2008

VOICE is going to organize a discussion meeting on `IFIs are the Major Barriers to Development Effectiveness: Linking Financial Crisis to Food, Debt and Climate Change'.

The objective of the workshop is to critically examine the neo-liberal perspective-- the policies and projects of international financial
institutions (IFIs), and its relation with food, debt and climate crisis. Also the discussion will highlight how the corporate globalization, the IFIs and transnational corporations make the world economic order worsen and create recent global financial crisis which puts negative impact over national economy and affects people's life and livelihood.

Time: 9:00am-1:00pm
Location: CIRDAP Conference Hall , Dhaka

This will involve a wide range of civil society including activists, researchers, academicians, journalists, women groups, farmer's associations,local and national NGOs and members of professional bodies. Eminent economists, experts and representatives of NGOs and CSOs among others will be present as key discussants.

Please contact us for more information! (email: exchange.voice@gmail.com, Mobile: 01712-990078)

Participants from various civil society organizations agreed to monitor closely the
 policies, projects and programs of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) in Bangladesh in the face of changing nature of the ADB. Speakers critically evaluated recently drafted the national action plan on climate change. The national action plan was drafted without any public participation especially the vulnerable communities. 

The day long consultation on Environment and Climate Change: Role of the ADB in Bangladesh held at the Mohammadpur auditorium attended by nearly 40 representatives from NGOs, civil society organizations, academicians, journalists and human rights activists across the country. Speakers demanded that international financial institutions (IFIs) and northern multinational companies should shed the climate hypocrisy if they want to consider impacts of climate change on people.

The event was organized by Voice, a research and advocacy organization based in Dhaka and Manila based NGO Forum on ADB- an international civil society networks.

No strings with foreign aid demanded

Social and development activists on Monday called for bringing an end to conditions in taking foreign aid and ensure a transparent, accountable and coordinated process based on the UN charter.

Representatives of a number of organisations, under the banner of Aid Accountability Group, expressed their concern over the issue at a news conference at the Dhaka Reporters Unity, organised ahead of the ministerial meeting on ‘effectiveness of foreign aid’ to be held in Ghanaian capital Accra in September 2-4.

The speakers warned that the US and the World Bank at the Accra meeting would try to establish the dominance of the lenders in setting terms and conditions for providing foreign assistance to developing countries.

Alongside the ministerial meeting, citizens’ organisation from all over the world will also meet in Accra from August 31 to September 1 to discuss how foreign assistance can be made more effective in the development process of a country.
The coordinator of the Aid Accountability Group, Ahmed Swapan Mahmud, also the executive director of Voices for Interactive Choice and Empowerment, stressed ensuring ‘democratic ownership’ of foreign aid.

VOICE
2008-02-05

Multi-stakeholders discussion held: Effective use of foreign aid helps reduce poverty
Staff Reporter/ http://nation.ittefaq.com/ 10 July 2008

Speakers at a discussion yesterday urged donors and recipient countries to reform and properly manage foreign aid in order to improve its effectiveness.They however, said that widening of tax net and proper investment of foreign remittances could significantly help reduce the country's aid dependency.

If the necessary reforms were carried out in the utilization of foreign aid then it would reduce poverty, inequality, accelerate economic growth, build capacity and enhance the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDG's), they added.

Their observation came at a multi-stakeholder discussion on "Paris Declaration and Aid Effectiveness" jointly organised by Voice and Aid Accountability at Jatiya Press Club.

Dr Kazi Koliquzzaman Ahmad presided over the function. Dr Atiur Rahman, Dr Pias Karim, Bo Sundstrom of DFID, Jan Moller Hansen, Charge d' Affaires of the Danish Embassy, Monwar Hossain Akhand and Mohsin Ali, among others, took part in the discussion. Ahmed Swapan Mahmud gave vote of thanks.

Foreign Aid to Bangladesh represents only 1-2% of the GDP, yet this small percentage is exerting a huge pressure on our country through the policy conditionalities attached to this aid. What other ways are there to obtain alternative financing and push out IFIs altogether?