Foreign aid plays a significant part in the sustainability of social and economic activities of underdeveloped and developing nations. Foreign aid is crucial in ensuring economic development and better living conditions for underdeveloped and developing states (Nielsen et al., 2011). Foreign aid is greatly affected by peace and war.
Effect of Peace on Foreign Aid
Peace is among the most significant factors which affect foreign aid. One of the effects of peace is that it allows for foreign aid to reach the desired destination. In most cases, foreign aid is meant to help people to alleviate their situation (Girod, 2012). For example, foreign aid can be aimed at fighting hunger, diseases, or illiteracy. A country having peace allows for foreign aid to be used effectively (Bearce & Tirone, 2010).
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Another factor which makes which makes peace to be beneficial with respect to the distribution of foreign aid is that it allows for collaboration between international and local institutions to distribute the aid to the required people (Bearce & Tirone, 2010). Peace ensures the preservation of important institutions in a country, institutions that can guarantee foreign aid is distributed effectively (Bearce & Tirone, 2010).
Lastly, peace provides a conducive environment that allows for foreign to be distributed. Peace brings stability in a country that makes it possible for foreign aid to be advanced to the country. Peace in a country also attracts donors to offer foreign aid to a country. In some cases, donors use their own people to distribute the aid to people. When a country lacks peace, the safety of these foreign aid workers is threatened (Boyce, 2013). This can thereby scare the donors from advancing the aid to a country if there is no peace (Bearce & Tirone, 2010).
Effects of War on Foreign Aid
While peace has largely positive effects on foreign aid, war has been shown to negatively affect foreign aid. One of the effects of war on foreign aid is that war destroys the necessary institutions that help in the distribution of foreign aid. During wars, there is a lot of destruction that takes place (Girod, 2012). Buildings are bombed and people flee for safety. War brings chaos in a country making it hard to carry out the distribution of foreign aid. It also makes it hard for foreign aid workers to carry out activities since they are likely to be caught in the war. This makes most of foreign aid workers and donors to shy away from providing aid to affected individuals (Bearce & Tirone, 2010).
Another effect of war on foreign aid is that it makes it hard for the aid to reach the intended people. During wars, warlords take control of regions or countries and this makes it hard for foreign aid to be provided to people. A good example of how war hinders foreign aid from reaching to people is Somalia. In the 1990s, there was war in Somalia with a number of warlords fighting to control the country (Boyce, 2013). One of the most powerful warlords was Mohamed Farrah Aidid. Mohamed Farrah Aidid controlled the majority of Somalia and everything that entered the country went through him. When foreign aid in form of food and medication was brought into the country, Aidid seized it making it hard for the aid to reach people. While a lot of food was being brought into the country, people continued to die of hunger because Aidid could not allow the food to reach the people who needed it. It forced the US to use the military to ensure that the food reached the people (Nielsen et al., 2011). However, even then, it was not possible to adequately distribute aid to people in the country since the military convoys escorting the food were constantly attacked and the food was taken away (Bearce & Tirone, 2010).
Lack of mobility is also another effect of war on foreign aid. War makes it hard for both the foreign aid workers and the people who need it to move so that they can access. During a war, mobility is limited (Bearce & Tirone, 2010). People are forced to remain indoors or move to areas that are less dangerous. The lack of mobility means that foreign aid workers cannot access the people they need to provide the aid to. People cannot also venture out to look for the aid (Nielsen et al ., 2011).
War also destroys the positive effects that foreign aid has had on a country. For developing countries, foreign aid has been instrumental in the economic and social development. For example, most of the infrastructure witnessed in most African countries has been due to foreign aid (Nielsen et al ., 2011). Foreign aid has also been instrumental in the improvement of health care in developing nations. During wars, most of these positive developments are destroyed (Nielsen et al ., 2011).
Conclusion
Basically, foreign aid is crucial in ensuring economic development and better living conditions for underdeveloped and developing states. Peace and war affects foreign aid in different ways. Peace promotes foreign aid by providing a suitable environment that allows foreign aid to be distributed as well as preserving the necessary institutions that help foreign aid to be distributed. War, on the other hand, destroys institutions and destabilizes the environment which it hard for foreign aid to be given to people.
References
Bearce, D. H., & Tirone, D. C. (2010). Foreign aid effectiveness and the strategic goals of donor governments. The Journal of Politics , 72 (3), 837-851.
Boyce, J. K. (2013). Investing in peace: Aid and conditionality after civil wars (No. 351). Routledge.
Girod, D. M. (2012). Effective Foreign Aid Following Civil War: The Nonstrategic‐Desperation Hypothesis. American Journal of Political Science , 56 (1), 188-201.
Nielsen, R. A., Findley, M. G., Davis, Z. S., Candland, T., & Nielson, D. L. (2011). Foreign aid shocks as a cause of violent armed conflict. American Journal of Political Science , 55 (2), 219-232.
