Way back in the
1960s a significant part of the way we “swung” was an enthusiastic campaign for
the countries in the rich “Developed World” to allocate 1% of their National Incomes for the reduction and eventual elimination of poverty in what we then called the “Third World.” This succeeded to the extent that by the end
of the decade, the United Nations was sufficiently convinced to pass a resolution
in which the governments of the rich countries agreed to devote 0.7% of their
national incomes to Overseas Development Assistance (ODA). The other 0.3% was expected to come from the
private sector and charities.
Sadly, for the rest of the century (all of thirty years) only a handful of rich countries, primarily Sweden, the Netherlands, Norway and Denmark, actually hit the 0.7% target. The UK, even during the virtuous Blair-Brown years (1997 to 2010) never quite made it, (though they did set up a separate government Department for International Development - DfID) and it was not until the much maligned Coalition, of which we Liberals were part, and on this issue probably the driving influence, that the target was achieved.
The Conservative
Leader and Prime Minister, David Cameron, still in his “Hug a hoody” mode, was sympathetic,
and, in spite of the strains on the public purse caused by repairing the
ravages of the 2008/9 financial crisis, proclaimed:
“The UK will not balance its books on the
backs of the poorest.” (27th
may, 2011)
A year later
he resolved:
“The argument of
the heart is even when things are difficult at home we should fulfil our moral
obligations to the poorest of the world. There are still more than a billion
people living on a dollar a day,”
So, lo and
behold, 43 years after having supported the UN Resolution, the British government
actually reached the 0.7% target in 2013.
The Coalition
then cemented the target into law in 2015.
Mr Cameron, now perhaps with a touch of the Borises, couldn’t help
boasting about it and declared:
“If Britain can do it, others can.”
Sadly, his
successor but one, was made of less stern stuff, and the Tory government of
2020 cut the ODA budget from 0.7% to 0.5%.
As a result, development
projects in health, education, and infrastructure have been scaled back.
Worse was to
come.
It has
recently been revealed that a significant part of the 0.5% budget meant for ODA
has been diverted to the Home Office to finance
accommodation for refugees and asylum seekers in this country. The amount now spent in the poorest countries
is a mere 0.36% of GDP: only just over half the proportion Cameron boasted
about. This has led to cuts 37% in education projects, 39% in health, 42% in
humanitarian support and a massive 58% on water and sanitation. (For the effects of this last one see posts
on this blog on the 19th November, Word Toilet Day, in the past few
years) .
The above
percentages are taken from an article by Larry Elliot in the Guardian, 16th
September, 2024. https://www.theguardian.com/business/2024/sep/15/one-more-item-labour-to-do-list-repair-uk-aid-budget. The article concludes
with the following suggestions for the Labour government to implement.
1. 1. At least maintain ODA at the 2003 level of
0.58% of GDP (before some of it was syphoned off to the Home Office).
2. 2. Give a more honest report on what ,
of the ODA budget, is actually devoted to ODA.
3. 3. Explain in detail what in fact are
the “circumstances” which will “permit”
the 0.7% to be restored.
4. 4. Recreate the Department
for International Development as an independent department with its own cabinet
minister (the Tories merged it with the Foreign Office)
5. 5. Join an international campaign to
tackle “unsustainable debt.” ( Some counties in the “Global South” are forced
to spend more on debt servicing to hedge funds than they spend on education and
health)
6. 6. Press the IMF to create more SDRs (
Jim Callaghan’s "paper gold”) to be shared among the poorest countries.
That’s a
challenge for the Labour Government and a test of its moral compass.
(A heart-rending article in today's Guardian by Malawi's Minister of Health describes the crises the country is experiencing, not least outbreaks of cholera and malaria, as a result of catastrophic flooding and serious drought in recent years. See
PS ( *24th September) The Debt Justice group, of which I am a paid up supporter, held this protest at the Labour Party conference. I hope they were heard.
https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/#inbox/FMfcgzQXJQKRNdwWVrHQsKBkbsTlcWxC?compose=new