Publication Details
Beyond bandaids
better aid for chronic poverty and fragile states
Daniel Coppard
2010
Abstract
One third of all people living in absolute poverty live in fragile states. Despite the assumption that humanitarian aid is short-term and used primarily to save lives, an analysis of resource flows to chronic crises and fragile states demonstrates that large amounts of humanitarian aid flow to the same countries year after year. This suggests that a financing mechanism with a short planning and expenditure horizon is being used to address the long-term needs of the chronically poor. This paper analyses financing mechanisms for addressing chronic poverty in fragile states, examining the obstacles to effectiveness and donor attempts to address challenges.
This includes:
- An analysis of resource flows to fragile states (ODA, peace/conflict related official finance, Foreign Direct Investment and other private flows, remittances and domestic resources),
- An analysis of the divisions between humanitarian and development aid in the current aid architecture;
- An assessment of who is empowered and disempowered by different mechanisms;
- The absence of feedback from the chronically poor that are supposed to benefit;
- New structures for climate change financing and how these will impact resources for chronic poverty.
The paper concludes with recommendations on how the concept of aid and the aid architecture need to be re-engineered to focus on human security and underwriting minimum income.
Publication Type(s)
Conference Paper
Ten Years of War Against Poverty Conference Papers
Conference: Ten Years of War Against Poverty