Jonathan Foreman

The great aid mystery

Our rulers must know that development aid doesn’t work. So why do they throw money at it?

One of the more bizarre mysteries of contemporary British politics is the ironclad, almost fanatical intensity of the government’s commitment to foreign aid spending and the activities of DFID, the Department for International Development.

It is bizarre because the Prime Minister talks about foreign aid as if it’s all about famine relief and saving children’s lives.

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