Politics
Development
Who is development for? In this section, we unpack the complex politics of international aid and development programmes.
Articles discuss the colonial roots of development, instances of aid misuse and the perhaps unintended consequences of celebrity activism. To accompany this analysis of current models, New Internationalist asks how aid could be more just and equitable.
Should emergency aid be neutral and unconditional?
Khin Ohmar and Toby Lanzer explore the complex trade-offs made by humanitarians working under repressive regimes.
‘Let’s not make the same mistake again’
Ritu Mahendru speaks to Afghan aid organizations who claim international sanctions are making it harder to feed people in a country on the edge of famine.
G7 resistance: Harnessing collective power
As the international summit begins in Cornwall, Amy Hall speaks to people showing up to challenge its powerful leaders.
Don’t just defend aid – make it just
Britain’s aid budget cut is the act of a callous government. But we must re-think aid if we’re to turn the tide, writes Nick Dearden.
The UK is taking aid back to its colonial roots
The government’s decision to scrap the Department for International Development will set back efforts to fix global inequalities by decades, writes Martin Drewry of Health Poverty Action.
Does celebrity activism do more harm than good?
Andrés Jiménez and Paul Cullen politely disagree on this tricky issue
The age of development: an obituary
‘Development’ has long been reframed and hijacked, but, Wolfgang Sachs argues, we need to move beyond its misguided assumptions into a new post-development era based on eco-solidarity.
The bleak future of British foreign aid
The government’s ‘international development’ strategy is a red herring for dubious private financing, argues Nick Dearden
At this rate, the UK’s aid programme will be gone by Christmas
The Department for International Development has become a lightning rod for rightwing anger. And with a new Conservative leadership race set to begin, its days may be numbered. But Mark Nowottny sees hope in ‘bold and fresh’ ideas from the Left.
Labour: the world urgently needs a fair price for medicines
The UK’s Shadow Secretary of State for International Development makes the case for rebalancing power away from pharmaceutical corporations and towards people.
Should the West stop giving aid to Africa?
Is aid just an extension of colonial economics? Or a lifeline for imperfect but necessary support systems? Firoze Manji and Pablo Yanguas go head to head on the thorny topic of development assistance.
Theresa May’s dancing to the wrong tune on development
These latest announcements look like a modern-day scramble for Africa, Kate Osamor writes.
Labour knocks out a radical new vision for development
Hazel Healy gives five reasons as to why Labour's new development policy paper is worth celebrating.
Labour: a new approach to development?
Kate Osamor, Labour’s shadow international development secretary, speaks to Yohann Koshy about aid and empire.
Save the Children whistleblowers speak out
Brie O’Keefe and Alexia Pepper de Caires speak to Ben Phillips about the ‘loneliness’ of taking on powerful institutions.
Then & Now
A photographic account of changes over the years in: housing; water; education; health; sanitation; food and farming; technology; and women.
Mind the technology gap - the facts
Technology can be a big enabler – yet the difference in terms of what’s available to rich and poor is vast.
Technology as if people mattered*
The world's poor are still losing out. They need a better deal, argues Dinyar Godrej.
Eight ways to help stop human trafficking in Nepal
Women and children are even more vulnerable following the earthquakes, writes Beulah Devaney, so what can we do?
The unwelcome return of development pornography
John Hilary on a degrading spectacle that keeps coming back.
The company they keep
Big NGOs and big corporations – Ian Brown finds they are getting a bit too close.
NGOs - do they help?
There are more NGOs today than ever; some are bigger than ever. Yet, discovers Dinyar Godrej, questions persist about their role.
Tony Blair’s deadly legacy reaps Save The Children award
Felicity Arbuthnot is incredulous that a children’s charity can honour a man so closely linked to infanticide.
The Western way isn’t always the best way
Development – when forced onto poor countries – is a dangerous concept, argues Amit Singh.
Is teaching English in poor countries a misguided form of philanthropy?
Such ‘aid’ will only ever lift a few out of poverty, argues Dan Falvey.
Have the public had enough of manipulative charity marketing?
NGOs are seen as cash-obsessed with advertising campaigns portraying beneficiaries as hapless victims, says Natalie Nezhati.
NGOs must give up power
Aid organizations need to relinquish the clout that comes with money and bureaucracy, argues Oxfam’s Ben Phillips.
As the cuts bite, why bother with the global South?
Jonathan Glennie opens our Internationalists series, calling on rich nations to reject nagging stinginess and embrace radical redistribution across borders.
How hacktivism fights corruption
Computer programmers and campaigners have teamed up to ‘hack’ for justice, reports Transparency International’s Milena Marin.
Should donor nations give aid to countries with poor human rights records?
Human rights lawyer Errol Mendes and aid campaigner Jonathan Glennie go head-to-head - read their arguments and join the debate.
The flip side to Bill Gates' charity billions
Microsoft's former CEO has made massive donations to global health programmes but an investigation by Andrew Bowman reveals some unpleasant side-effects.
Haiti: where did all the money go?
More than $10 billion was raised worldwide for Haiti after the earthquake. But, two years on, what have NGOs done with the cash? Nick Harvey investigates.
Tsunami business
It could have been their finest hour. But Mari Marcel Thekaekara encountered bad behaviour by bingos after the tsunami in Tamil Nadu.
