Teach a man to fish; feed him for a lifetime

A nation's foreign aid should be directed to help those countries that help themselves.
Describe a specific situation in which a nation's foreign aid might justifiably not be directed to help those countries that help themselves. Discuss what you think determines whether or not a nation's foreign aid should be directed to help those countries that help themselves.
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In a period of economic hardship, citizens of wealthy nations question why their strained budgets continue to make room for foreign aid. As the government slashes its jobs by the thousands, many insist that aid to developing countries should be halted or placed in the backburner. However, wealthy nations do not aid poor countries for purely humanitarian reasons. Rather, there exist quid pro quo agreements that help advance the donor's various economic and national security interests. While donors can benefit greatly from giving foreign aid, they still must make sure that the resources go to countries that help themselves. When operating a system that encourages corruption and/or dependence, donors cause great harm to the receiving countries.

It is well known that foreign aid often does not reach those who really need it. Indeed, the majority of poor nations are ruled by corrupt leaders that end up hording the aid for their personal enrichment. Donor countries are aware of this problem but do not do much to resolve it because the corrupt leaders are the decision-makers that can help expand markets and also influence domestic policies. Wealthy nations, however, should help further transparency in these countries by minimizing corruption in government. By turning a blind eye to the mishandling of aid, donor countries further the corruption problems.

Donor nations should make an effort to make sure they give a "hand up" not "hand outs." For instance, if the donor nation continually gives out bags of food on a consistent basis, receiving countries will become dependent and not make enough efforts to develop their own industries. These bags of food also skew the economic balance in the receiving country by putting farmers out of work and adversely affecting local industries. Instead of giving hand outs, donor nations should promote development programs that help local people build knowledge and skills to become independent and compete in the world.

Granted, wealthy nations should feel obliged to give aid in certain cases regardless of whether the receiving country takes steps to help themselves. From time to time, sudden, major natural disasters strike and leave millions without food and water. Governments cannot handle the overwhelming demand for aid and wealthier countries step in to support humanitarian efforts. The Haiti earthquakes and Asian tsunamis in the past decade are examples where wealthier people of the world and governments exhibited their magnanimity and sincere concern for the victims.

In times of sudden national disasters, foreign aid is essential in preventing the death of millions of victims. Foreign aid, however, serves more purposes than purely humanitarian ones and can help wealthy nations influence policies in their favor, among other things. These donor nations should, however, be cognizant of the effect that the aid has in receiving countries. They should ensure that the aid reaches those who really need it and verify that receiving countries are doing their part by taking real responsibility for their own problems.