Opinion
Africa needs Trade not Aid
The Aid for Trade initiative has been identified as a means of robust economic development. Foreign aid has been and is still heavily considered by foreign development partners as the way forward. In the past 50 years, more than US$1 trillion in development-related aid has been transferred from western economies to Africa, however, the following question arises – has this assistance improved the lives of ordinary Africans?
There is mounting evidence that suggests that across the continent, the beneficiaries of this aid are not better off as a result of it, but much worse. The aid model has failed – there has been no resultant growth as a result of this aid.
Total foreign aid to Africa amounts to a little over US$50 billion dollars a year.
Aid to Africa is and has always been a band-aid and not a long-term solution since aid does not aim at transforming Africa’s structurally dependent economies. If donors aim to make long-term sustainable impact, aid should target transcontinental projects such as highways, telecommunications and power plants.
Development aid promotes a “dependency syndrome” as it creates the impression that emergence from poverty depends on external donations rather than on people’s own efforts and motivation, the more reason why Africans should focus on trade and not aid.
Dambisa Moyo, a global international economist argues in her famous book “Dead Aid: Why Aid Is Not Working and How There Is a Better Way for Africa” that the notion that aid can alleviate poverty is a myth since aid has been and continues to be, an unmitigated political, economic and humanitarian disaster’ for most developing countries.
She argues that the vicious cycle of aid is one that chokes off investment, encourages dependency and facilitates corruption, adding that this cycle “perpetuates underdevelopment and guarantees economic failure” in economically poorer regions on the globe. In her book, Moyo also touches on “the paradox of plenty”, insisting that aid has in the past instigated many of the conflicts in Africa.
