Over £1bn of UK foreign “aid” used to spread

[chemical-licker]

Over £1bn of UK foreign “aid” used to spread propaganda

http://www.policynetwork.net/main/press_release.php?pr_id=150

The Department for International Development (DfID) claims to be“leading the UK government’s fight against world poverty”. However, by2011 it will have spent over £1bn of taxpayers’ money on propaganda,according to “Fake Aid”, a new report from International Policy Network.

Recipients of this money include trade unions and other partisan political organisations in the UK. Examples include:

£1.2 million given to the Trades Union Congress (TUC) since 2003 foractivities including: lobbying, hiring new staff and an “internationalbuffet and wine” event to celebrate “International Women’s Day” in theUK. DfID also paid the TUC to hold lessons in how to apply for DfIDfunds.

£300,000 to the National Union of Teachers (NUT) to “enable them [teachers] to become global agents of change”.

The creation of fake NGOs such as “Connections for Development” (CfD),supposedly a forum for black and ethnic minorities to engage “on issuesrelating to international development.” DfID created and is the onlydonor to CfD, providing it with £600,000 in its first two years, yet anindependent review questioned “the purpose of the organisation.”

£10 million spent flying poor Brits to poor countries to work for free.

IPN’s Julian Harris, one of the report’s authors, said “DfID oftenhand-picks the largest recipients, such as trade unions, behind closeddoors. This smacks of cronyism.”

The report highlights the waste of DfID funds on political campaigningwhile a child dies every 30 seconds from malaria in poor countries.

“The money DfID is wasting in this year alone could in principle treat230 million people suffering from malaria,” concluded Harris.

[Admiral Danger]

this deserves a size 10 facepalm

Edited September 8, 2009 by Dr Alien

[stevewinn]

what a bloody waste, just like the five billion we spend in over seas. aid. no not the amount we send to Africa to people who really need it, but to India and even china. two countries who have a booming economy and space programs. i couldnt believe it when gordon the gopher handed over 300 million pounds to india to help them fight povery, then went on to hand 200 million to china for the same thing. its not our job to save the world, its bono's or bone'o and the other plank. gandalf from the boom town bleedin rats

[Mattshark]

what a bloody waste, just like the five billion we spend in over seas. aid. no not the amount we send to Africa to people who really need it, but to India and even china. two countries who have a booming economy and space programs. i couldnt believe it when gordon the gopher handed over 300 million pounds to india to help them fight povery, then went on to hand 200 million to china for the same thing. its not our job to save the world, its bono's or bone'o and the other plank. gandalf from the boom town bleedin rats

I agree, China and India both do not need our aid at all and with the money in both those nations should be able to sort out their poverty themselves. I do worry about how much of the aid actually goes to those who need it too.

[GreyWeather]

I agree, China and India both do not need our aid at all and with the money in both those nations should be able to sort out their poverty themselves. I do worry about how much of the aid actually goes to those who need it too.

I once read that the majority of Aid sent to Africa, is actually kept by their govenments and never really passed onto the people who actually need it. Not surprising, seeing how most of Africa's governments are corrupt...

Not to mention the pope sticking his damn nose where it doesn't belong, and keeping any advancements of helping Africa's population tackle its major problems - dietry, food, HIV and AIDs, ect.

Edit: Missing some letters.

Edited September 8, 2009 by GreyWeather

[Mattshark]

I once read that the majority of Aid sent to Africa, is actually kept by their govenments and never really passed onto the people who actually need it. Not surprising, seeing how most of Africa's governments are corrupt...

Not to mention the pope sticking his damn nose where it doesn't belong, and keeping any advancements of helping Africa's population tackle its major problems - dietry, food, HIV and AIDs, ect.

Edit: Missing some letters.

That is what I worry about sadly, the countries in Africa that require the most aid are the ones with the worst governments.

[stevewinn]

That is what I worry about sadly, the countries in Africa that require the most aid are the ones with the worst governments.

matt, do you reckon Africa is kept poor so they don't develop, meaning their not in direct competition with the western powers for trade, natural resources etc..

[Mattshark]

matt, do you reckon Africa is kept poor so they don't develop, meaning their not in direct competition with the western powers for trade, natural resources etc..

I am really not sure. The west did help keep some pretty unpleasant leaders in place to prevent communist uprising in some nations (Zaire/DRC for one). I think the biggest issue is the disorder many nations were left in post colonialism, power vacuums don't help and lead to a lot of problems. Some of the fighting from that is only just coming to an end now. There is also the issues with how countries were cut up. Another major issue is the debt a lot of these nations have to the IMF and western nations.

Some African countries are doing far better than others, however. Ghana for example fairs far better than its neighbours even before an increase in tourism (though its wages are yet to reflect this although the government is hoping to make economic reforms to change this) and Kenya and Tanzania have used their tourism to reasonably good effect. But there is still a lot more that needs to be done. Education is a must for this though in some countries like Cote D'Ivoire education has been unavailable because the children where forced to fight in the civil war for example. I think we will see the more stabilised African nations become wealthier and more advanced as long as they stay stable and avoid the wars that have ravaged the continent. But the fact that some African nations are able to be UN peace keepers in some of these conflict zones is encouraging (such as Kenya in Sierra Leone's civil war). I was amazed to see that Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Burundi and Rwanda are also considering a federation and a single currency born out of the current East African Community with the aim to improve the area economically and increase security and for improved tourism as they plan one visa for all 5 nations.

I think my judgement on this whether we are forcing poverty on Africa will be left till I see how the continent does with its local powers becoming wealthier and how they progress.

HIV is unfortunately a massive issue in sub-Saharan Africa and sadly one that not enough nations take it seriously and because of the poverty in many nations prostitutes don't take seriously and this means it spreads even faster. Even in Botswana a country where 60% of the population live above the poverty line HIV has not been addressed properly by the government and education is something that would definitely make a massive difference there.

I do not think HIV is a government made virus, however, as I know some folk do.

Education, peace and cooperation are what Africa really needs and I think if it gets them, it will increase in prosperity.

[Bill Hill]

yup ain't wikipedia great. ^

Education, peace and cooperation are what Africa really needs

I agree, although if I may just add three more items to the list..

renewable energy, lentils and... L....l... Love??

Love is all you need.

[Mattshark]

yup ain't wikipedia great. ^

It is but my girlfriend also used to live in Ghana and she has friends there (some of whom I met in June while at a wedding in Delhi of all places) so I have some idea what it is like. We are hoping to visit soon.

I agree, although if I may just add three more items to the list..

renewable energy, lentils and... L....l... Love??

Love is all you need.

No one deserves lentils.

[Bill Hill]

It is but my girlfriend also used to live in Ghana and she has friends there (some of whom I met in June while at a wedding in Delhi of all places) so I have some idea what it is like. We are hoping to visit soon.

I've heard it's amazing, really an amazing place... full of of amazing people..

Although it is a bit of s*** hole, but an amazing one.

[Mattshark]

I've heard it's amazing, really an amazing place... full of of amazing people..

Although it is a bit of s*** hole, but an amazing one.

Accra is not the best city in the world apparently. But they have some nice rainforest further up the Volta and man eating chimps near the C D'I border.

Kat said she loved it there though.

Edited September 8, 2009 by Mattshark

[Bill Hill]

Accra is not the best city in the world apparently. But they have some nice rainforest further up the Volta and man eating chimps near the C D'I border.

yup, just be careful,

someone I knew, got hacked to death by guerillas, looking for gorillas.

I like to think the irony wasn't wasted upon him.

[ExpandMyMind]

matt, do you reckon Africa is kept poor so they don't develop, meaning their not in direct competition with the western powers for trade, natural resources etc..

i know this question was directed at matt but i thought i would throw my opinion in there.

yes steve, i believe that to be true. not just with africa, but south america and china too. this new proposed carbon tax will be the icing on the cake for them as it will mean african countries will have no chance of progressing through industrialisation. and it will also help control up and coming superpowers india and china, aswell as any other country that wants to play with the big boys.

[Mattshark]

i know this question was directed at matt but i thought i would throw my opinion in there.

yes steve, i believe that to be true. not just with africa, but south america and china too. this new proposed carbon tax will be the icing on the cake for them as it will mean african countries will have no chance of progressing through industrialisation. and it will also help control up and coming superpowers india and china, aswell as any other country that wants to play with the big boys.

China and India can and do already play with the big boys.

[ExpandMyMind]

China and India can and do already play with the big boys.

did i say that wasn't the case? pretty sure i didn't.

my point was that this proposed tax will go a long way in halting their extremely quick progression.

[Mattshark]

did i say that wasn't the case? pretty sure i didn't.

my point was that this proposed tax will go a long way in halting their extremely quick progression.

I think they can use alternative energy sources or at least more efficient energy. I don't think it will halt their progress, just to rethink how they get there. I had noticed in Delhi they had already started to convert the buses to be greener.

[stevewinn]

i know this question was directed at matt but i thought i would throw my opinion in there.

yes steve, i believe that to be true. not just with africa, but south america and china too. this new proposed carbon tax will be the icing on the cake for them as it will mean african countries will have no chance of progressing through industrialisation. and it will also help control up and coming superpowers india and china, aswell as any other country that wants to play with the big boys.

nice one mate, an opinion with adding. you could be right mate.

Matt, Delhi as in New, because just last week the energy minister for India announced India is to triple its power supply in order to provide electricity to every village by 2020. they are planning to build coal powered power stations. and with India being in the top four of the worlds largest polluters, it seems the buses are well, trivial.

Edited September 9, 2009 by stevewinn

[Mattshark]

nice one mate, an opinion with adding. you could be right mate.

Matt, Delhi as in New, because just last week the energy minister for India announced India is to triple its power supply in order to provide electricity to every village by 2020. they are planning to build coal powered power stations. and with India being in the top four of the worlds largest polluters, it seems the buses are well, trivial.

Yes it is trivial, but that doesn't mean they cannot do it. I know how polluted Delhi is, it was worse thank Bangkok. What they need is to look into supplementation with renewable sources, but such is drive of a lot industry and the little concern for consequence the people involved has, it is probably unlikely.