Developmental Aid to Africa, 30 Years After

Development Analysis Vol.5 (Volume 4 omitted)

Development Analysts provide commentaries based on their expertise and knowledge on development issues in Africa. To reply to these commentaries, register on the ARYI website and click on "blog", or e-mail: Development_Analysis@africaninitiative.org. This is an initiative by ARYI and the Forum for Global Action. The commentaries are viewpoints solely of the authors meant to initiate dialogue and critical thinking on development issues on the continent and globally.

Topic: Developmental Aid to Africa, 30 Years After
By: Fatoki Taiye Timmy (Nigeria)

As the real people of the world concluded the world social forum held in Kenya, one question that readily comes to mind is what were the main issues discussed? It is obvious from the type of people of the world that gathered in Kenya for the forum, that the issues discussed were poverty, diseases and the rest of the turbulence covering the face of the world.

The anonymous people of the world that gathered at the world social forum in Kenya are not the G8's of this world, but ordinary people who have made more remarkable positive impact on the ordinary citizens of the world than the G8, IMF, WORLD BANK and other credit institutions combined.

But the question is, if developmental aid to Africa over the past 30 years were really meant for Africa’s development, there would not be need for such gathering, which of course addressed issues much more related to the continent of Africa than any other, due to its acute under-development, poverty and increasing rate of preventable diseases. The ability of the developed countries and its credit institutions to handle global disasters and pandemic like HIV and AIDS especially in poor countries of the world has been put to test. They are simply failing by the day, and badly too. The lack of commitments to the promises made by these rich countries of the North seems more of a conspiracy of a sort. The Africanisation and commercialization of HIV and AIDS pandemic is a clear example of the West’s lack of commitment to the African continent. So also are the numerous neo-liberal policies that retard rather than grow our economies.

The HIV and AIDS pandemic for example has been made worse by the profit system of the west and their stooges- the multinational pharmaceutical companies. The west’s atrocities are made worse by its lack of commitment in the face of blind disguise of developmental aid to Africa. While imposing its neo- liberal economic policies characterized by privatization, deregulation and trade liberalization on the continent of Africa. In the same vein imposing their African stooges (so –called World Bank experts) on the African people.

It is well known that all African nations blindfolded into these neo–liberal economy have had and are still having increasing cost of essential service, with a clear exacerbation of the effect of poverty. The west’s strict budgetary constraints on public spending as a condition of receiving loans and other beneficial financial facilities prevents poor nations of Africa from spending the meager amount they have on developmental projects and public sectors, causing lots of dehumanizing and immoral effects on the African people. For example out of the over 40 million people living with HIV and AIDS, 28 million are from sub- Saharan Africa. Out of about over 20 countries with the highest child mortality rates, 19 are from in Africa, the only exception being Afghanistan. And 1 in 6 children in sub-Saharan African dies before the age of 10 compared to 1 in about 200 in western countries. What could be more terrorizing than taking away people’s source of livelihood through economic exploitation and degradation of its environment.

More than 30 years of developmental aid to Africa. The UN still estimate that 11 million children in Sub-Saharan African have lost at least 1 parent to the HIV and AIDS pandemic, and predict that by the end of the decade, there could be 20 million of Orphan and Vulnerable children (OVC) in the region. Corruption on the continent is still at an all time high despite the surface efforts African leaders (including Nigeria’s leader) pretend to be putting in place.
Corruption in Africa comes with the help of the west who lodge in ill-gotten wealth of corrupt African leader in their countries. corporate giants of the west operating in Africa are daily reducing the means of livelihood of the African people, exploring Africa soil, at the same time exploiting the African people (SHELL, CHEVRON etc) through pollution of rivers and farmland, tax evasion etc. The neo- liberalism concept of the west has denied African countries their resources, food subsidies, health and education services. What more could be defined as injustice, slavery and dehumanization of a people than the having to know that in the world today, about 3 billion people (majority of whom are Africans) live on less income together than the world’s richest 300.

It is simply a show of lack of basic human decency and lack of compassion. Malaria in the world today still remains the biggest killer disease in Africa, coupled with the pandemic of HIV and AIDS, the continent of Africa seems to be on the same spot, even with over 30 years of developmental aid.

It is time to act and act well. Unless and until the west really gets committed to the plight of the African people by finding lasting solution to the problem of HIV and AIDS and malaria, environmental degradation by the multinational oil companies, unbalanced social and economic policies, unfair trade and the insincerity of the world financial institutions. And unless this form of terrorism on the African people stops, even 30 years from now, the continent of Africa could remain the same, if not worse. And surely the rest of the world would share of the brunt, because no one is safe until all are saved.