Famine, disease, poverty, and natural disasters- all have, at one point or another, ravaged humanity since the beginning of time. Events like these are part of the inevitable ebb and flow of human existence. Life brings moments of joy and suffering, and the unavoidable truth of death. And yet time after time, when disaster strikes hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of individuals who have joined the crusade against disaster and poverty. I am not trying to say that human suffering is in any way laughable, or undermining the amazing work international humanitarian aid organizations have made throughout the years. However, by doing good, they are doing bad. The continual providence of financial, medical, and industrial support by not only the United States, but nations across the globe, to third-world countries has lead to a multitude of problems that have been dutifully overlooked by the general public for far too long.
As humanitarian aid continues to flow across the world to Africa, the double-edged sword of aid wrecks havoc on national governments and in-turn the daily lives of each African citizen. While the monetary donations offer many possible short term benefits-immediate food supplies, medical care, and clean water- they all come at a price. By accepting billions upon billions of dollars in foreign aid and loans from other countries, the governments of these African nations suffer under the insurmountable debt they own. Leaders cut education, healthcare, and food programs all to pay off the loans that every official knows they will never have the money to pay back. The inescapable fact is that African nations are destroying their own economy. Failed agricultural schemes and rampant government corruption siphon the much needed aid away from the areas that need the most help. By accepting this aid, African leaders are “buying” American grain to feed their people, essentially bankrupting all the small, rural farmers in their own country. Trade barriers should be dismantled and African business permitted to compete as it can on the global market. One good business contract is worth more to Africa than a thousand foreign aid consultants, and one new factory has more value than a hundred million dollars of aid. In the end, Africa will have to solve its own problems.
As humanitarian aid continues to flow across the world to Africa, the double-edged sword of aid wrecks havoc on national governments and in-turn the daily lives of each African citizen. While the monetary donations offer many possible short term benefits-immediate food supplies, medical care, and clean water- they all come at a price. By accepting billions upon billions of dollars in foreign aid and loans from other countries, the governments of these African nations suffer under the insurmountable debt they own. Leaders cut education, healthcare, and food programs all to pay off the loans that every official knows they will never have the money to pay back. The inescapable fact is that African nations are destroying their own economy. Failed agricultural schemes and rampant government corruption siphon the much needed aid away from the areas that need the most help. By accepting this aid, African leaders are “buying” American grain to feed their people, essentially bankrupting all the small, rural farmers in their own country. Trade barriers should be dismantled and African business permitted to compete as it can on the global market. One good business contract is worth more to Africa than a thousand foreign aid consultants, and one new factory has more value than a hundred million dollars of aid. In the end, Africa will have to solve its own problems.
