Whenever there is a food or other humanitarian crisis in a foreign country - usually in Africa - the overseas aid agencies step in. There are big campaigns and films of starving children and refugees are typically shown - and these campaigns raise many milions of dollars.
Such campaigns clearly do save lives, so how can that be a bad thing? Here is a video which tries to explain:
You can also see this video on the Issue Board.
So, what are the cons?:
1) Corruption - governments do not necessarily deliver the aid to the people who need it most
2) Over a trillion dollars of aid has gone to Africa - but economic growth has not happened and poverty is as bad as ever
3) Aid encourages inflation
4) Offering free food reduces local prices and local farmers go out of business
5) If the aid is a donation and not a gift it puts the poor nations in much more debt
6) White governments give aid to the places they want to give aid - always to capitalist governments, never to communist ones
7) It encourages dependence, not independence
8) Aid is not a long term solution.
Here is a view in favour:
The basic argument for foreign is is that it saves lives and helps improve quality of life.
What do you think??
It is proposed that foreign aid should continue