Lydia Hartsell

The controversy over the effectiveness of foreign assistance is an uneasy topic for some of those who work in or provide support to developing countries.  Engaging in it is like walking on a tight rope—you may find that you have the experience to do so, but with each step you teeter and totter, and in the end realize that in fact you are only walking a thin line.  Experiences with aid have shown it to both necessary and good, but also damaging and unfruitful.  Dambiysa Moyo, a Zambian, recently published a book called “Dead Aid ,” which specifically speaks to the negative concerns of aid.  In her book, she actually argues for the end of aid dependency in Africa over the next 5 years.  She points out the difference between those countries which have relied on aid to lift them out of poverty (ie. Tanzania, etc) and those countries which have relied on aid alternatives.  In fact, she spoke so strongly to Africa’s dependence on aid that she is now hated by many of her fellow Africans.  In my own experiences travelling and living abroad, I have also witnessed the negative aspects of aid as well as the good.  I would like to share with you some of my recent experiences in Tanzania.  

The intention of aid is supposed to allow the recipient to meet their burdening gaps or to fill certain specified needs.   The needs should be defined by the Tanzanians themselves, who know their country far better than any short-term outsider ever could, or by the workers who work in collaboration with Tanzanians and know the country very well.  In some cases, if not many as we have discussed in my MPH class, donor aid is directed to projects designated by the outside organizations’ agenda, and not necessarily the community’s agenda.  A nation’s autonomy gets stripped away. Greater harmonization between a country’s needs and a donor’s demands is essential to ensure a more effective funneling of aid.

Also, how can a country be supported from outside organizations when it is being harvested from the inside by outside country organizations? At a Rotary home fellowship this past week, the topic of conversation turned to the script on the box of red wine that was hospitably offered.  It was entirely in Italian. Yet the box was for a wine whose grapes were grown from Tanzanian soil, harvested by Tanzanian workers, and processed a small distance from the capital city of Tanzania. The Rotarians, more so the young adult daughter of one of the Rotarians, was furious that a product of Tanzania does not even contain a language readable by a common Tanzanian.   Much more, the product is not sold in any stores in the Dar es Salaam, and most likely the rest of the country.  Her anger and argument was justifiably so.  The product – whose start to finish is in Tanzania – was all largely shipped back to Italy for profit.

Moreso, humanitarian organizations whose purpose is to give support to Tanzania end up spending way too much money on pampering and pleasing the employees that live in the “harsh” conditions of a developing country.  I have been rudely awakened to the fact that a large number of humanitarian workers aren’t necessarily doing their jobs for humanitarian sake.  Some have other interests in mind.  I was at a party a while back where I was having a conversation with a group of Americans, including five workers from a well-known American health organization.  One of workers even had the audacity to complain that she was the only one of the five workers that did not have a pool where she lived.  Anand, Rebecca, and I, who all live in small, confined A/C-absent rooms, told her that we would gladly switch with her if she wasn’t happy with her current living situation. 

The large number of aid organizations and workers in Dar es Salaam has also greatly increased the price of rent because outside organizations and businesses are willing to pay the inflated prices.  I have been told that the price of Dar es Salaam apartments is comparable to Hong Kong and New York.  I am currently paying $300/month for a single room which is located over an hour’s drive outside of the city.  The apartment near city center where I stayed for several weeks with the researcher from an American university cost $3,500/month.

Another thing that I have noticed is some Tanzanians’ perception of deserving a handout.  The large amount of aid donation in Tanzania has warped their thinking and lessened their perception of personal competency.  Even a select few students in my own class have expressed their “helpless” state by frequently citing a portion of a development definition: “a life of many sufferings and few choices.”  This is how some of them sympathetically define their lives.  Yes, masters students receiving full funding for an advanced degree program that will in turn better their employment status and in turn, life.  Though this course could touch on the subject of many sufferings (I jest. We do, though, sit in a small classroom for 10-12hrs a day), it does not even come close to representing few choices.   Other select students even try to withdraw pity from Anand and me.  On different assignments they have played the pity card and a gentle arm touch to tell us that they have very little time or ability to complete their assigned part of the group project.  In another instance, they have asked Anand to request personal laptops from his sponsor.  Furthermore, during a Rotary event at a girls’ secondary school, one of the teacher’s gave a speech about their overwhelming need for $100,000 to build … a teachers’ lounge. 

On another occasion, Anand was able to purchase a convenient public health textbook for our class to have a hard-copy learning material.  Through the kind support of his hometown Rotary club, he was able to garner a textbook for every two students in our class.  In issuing these textbooks to the class, he added that they will be returned at the end of the year for future MPH cohorts to use—a noble and sustainable logic.  This statement, however, caused the class to erupt into a debate on how they wanted to keep the textbooks and that future years can find their own textbooks.  Whatever happened to sharing knowledge and good fortune? We tried to explain that they are to utilize the time now to soak up knowledge from the book so that they will have it in their heads once they leave the course, and future years will still benefit from this gift.

Corruption is another major concern.  Images of lush palaces and expensive vehicles may float into your minds, and in some cases, this is not far from the truth.  In fact, I have witnessed Parliament member’s motorcades with 15 to 20 SUVs and luxury cars long.  Even more, how can aid be channeled effectively when even some of my own classmates (who I regard as honorable individuals) openly cheat on tests when the teacher walks out of the room or take no consideration for the fact that they plagiarize large portions of their papers?  The governments of East Africa are a good representation of “taking shortcuts” when it comes to funneling aid.   The attitude of entitlement is a real problem.  In fact, I was reading an article from the Economist last week and it mentioned that almost a quarter of donor funding is “misallocated” meaning “no one knows where it actually goes.”  “Misallocated” funds can also add up quickly when you realize that Tanzania alone relies on foreign aid for 38% of its government funds.

In conclusion, I do want to sincerely thank all the noble workers and donors who spend their time and resources for the betterment of Tanzania.   I could have written this post with more “success stories” and kind-hearted deeds.  I would not being speaking truthfully, however, in expressing my past experiences with aid organizations and some Tanzanians’ mindset.  I do feel that aid can be important for the development of a country and most importantly, the saving and betterment of lives.  I do also feel that a good portion of aid is either lost in the process, warps a nation’s mindset of dependence, and/or inhibits a country’s ability to define and meet their own needs.  Aid is supposed to be a crutch that supports a country until it is strong enough to stand on its own.  It is not intended to be a wheelchair.

For more information, check out:

Ghanaian economist George Ayittey on “Dead Aid”

Blog by World Bank Chief Economist for Africa   

Global Health Magazine on Faith-Based Organizations and Non-governmental Organizations