NN42, June 2009
A Safari Towards Aid Effectiveness?
What Next for Aid and Development Cooperation Post Accra?
By Penny Davies, Diakonia, Stockholm
Email: penny.davies@diakonia.seKeywords
Non-DAC development assistance providers; 3rd High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness; triangular cooperation; China-Africa-EU
Summary
The increase of development assistance from so called ?non-DAC donors? brings many opportunities and challenges. China's engagement in Africa is perhaps one of the most debated examples of such growing partnerships. There is now an emerging consensus that more experience-sharing is needed between non-DAC, DAC and partner countries, as well as more inclusive dialogues on aid and development effectiveness at large.
Recent years have seen a rapid growth in funding from bilateral donors outside the Development Assistance Committee (DAC) of the OECD. This group, often referred to as ?non-DAC donors? for a lack of better definition, in reality consists of a very heterogeneous group of countries with diverse experiences of providing development assistance, often in the form of various South-South cooperation schemes.
While the ?non-DACs? for various reasons have not been that vocal or involved in discussions on the Paris Declaration and aid effectiveness at large, it is clear that they already play a central role in delivering development assistance to, as well as engaging in broader partnerships with, developing countries.
Similarly it is clear that this increase of development assistance from so called ?non-DAC donors? brings many opportunities and challenges. China?s engagement in Africa is perhaps one of the most debated examples of such growing partnerships. This new dynamic is not only of relevance for the development and poverty reduction strategies of the partner countries in question, but for ?traditional donor countries? and civil society organisations involved in development work. It brings to attention the need to rethink and restructure international aid and other types of cooperation and dialogues so that they are better suited to this new dynamic. This is crucial in order to ensure a common strategy for achieving fair and sustainable development.
Ahead of the High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness in Accra in 2008, a special working group was set up which came up with recommendations on how to enhance the cooperation between non DAC, DAC and partner countries. There is now an emerging consensus that more experience sharing is needed between them, as well as more inclusive dialogues on aid and development effectiveness at large. However, while there has been a lot of talking, it is now high time to move from words to action.
One key recommendation on how to proceed which also was mentioned in the outcome document, ?the Accra Agenda for Action?, is to develop triangular cooperation between non-DAC, DAC and developing countries to enhance aid and development effectiveness. This could be applied on China, Africa and EU cooperation at different levels. The added value of such triangular approaches can easily be motivated by the fact that China, Africa and the EU are already interlinked in global trade and investment patterns which raise challenges where each could benefit from and play a different role in finding constructive solutions. It is however, important to stress that triangular cooperation should not be about EU ?imposing itself? on the existing Africa ? China partnership, or vice versa, and that African priorities and leadership are key.
Such triangular partnerships should be constructive and based on a genuine interest in mutual learning, focussing on solutions which contribute to fair and sustainable development. As such there is a need to move beyond the suspicion and ?blame game? which at times have permeated the so called China-Africa debate. Both the western partners to Africa and China?s partnership with Africa have important positive experiences to share and both leave a lot to wish for in terms of their contributions to poverty reduction and sustainable development in Africa and elsewhere.
Secondly, such triangular partnerships should not be limited to government bodies but should include civil society organisations (CSOs). CSOs have extremely important roles to play in development in terms of identifying needs, coming up with constructive proposals, or acting as whistle blowers when things go wrong etc. Governments in Europe, Africa and China should give CSOs the space and support to be able to engage in triangular dialogues and cooperation with governments and among themselves to share experiences.
Triangular partnerships could be applied in different ongoing policy discussions such as climate change and finding solutions to unsustainable consumption and production models resulting in unsustainable resources extraction. In a post-Accra scenario for enhancing aid effectiveness, a triangular approach could be explored in discussions on the issues of policy space vs. conditionality vs. non-interference, which remain key sources of tension in aid relationships.
The non-interference principle is now enshrined in the Accra Agenda for Action in the section on South-South cooperation. However it remains unclear what it actually means and how it relates to widely agreed principles of social and environmental standards. China, and others, who practise this principle need to ensure that this does disregard the interests of poor people and the environment in partner countries. In the same way, traditional donors need to end their practices of pushing intrusive conditionalities on poor countries which override national democratic ownership. There is a need to find a common understanding beyond the limitations of both non-interference and conditionality practices in aid relationships with the objective to ensure true broad based ownership of policies in developing countries, and responsible social and environmental practices on the part of all those involved.
Further reading
Davies, P. (2009) Think piece on aid and development cooperation post Accra and beyond.
http://www.eurodad.org/whatsnew/reports.aspx?id=3259.
Davies, P. (2008) Aid Effectiveness and non-DAC development Assistance Providers, Consultative Findings Document, Informal Working Group on non-DAC Providers of Development Assistance, available at: www.undp-povertycentre.org/south.do.
Davies, P. (2007) China and the end of poverty in Africa ? Towards mutual benefit?, Diakonia and Eurodad, www.diakonia.se/china.
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