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Why Aid Is Not Working and How There Is a Better Way for Africa

Kevin DeYoung summarizes Dambisa Moyo’s book, Dead Aid: Why Aid Is Not Working and How There Is a Better Way for Africa.

Conclusion:

No doubt, Moyo’s descriptions of the problem and prescriptions are not shared by all economists. But almost every economist now agrees that (1) aid has very often not worked well and (2) aid by itself is not the answer. As Christians we too often settle for the futility of good intentions. We don’t want anyone to interrupt the feel-good express that is charity and the chiding of governments to give more aid. But we don’t have to choose between heartfelt concern for the plight of the “bottom billion” and careful thinking about how to help them. We can and must do both. The passion of Bono and your college advocacy group may be inspiring, but their ideas may still be deeply flawed. If just giving Africa more stuff were the answer, the problem would have been fixed decades ago. Tackling poverty in the developing world requires more than generous hearts and stricken consciences. It requires careful research, honest inquiry, and an understanding of economics that enables us not only to try to do good, but actually to do it.

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