Most African countries are the third world. Many of them experience hard economic times, which necessitate the seeking of foreign aid. Africa receives an approximation of fifty billion dollars in the form of aid every year. Even with that huge amount of aid, things are not yet good, and thus advocates of foreign aid are pushing for the figure to be doubled (Calderisi, 2006). Cutting the aid can be a big threat to the survival of so many African people.
Despite the fact that most of the aid given to African countries is meant to help the people who are not able to access their basic needs, most of the money ends up in the pockets of government officials and other interested parties (Joseph & Gillies 2008). That is why there is a very big gap between the poor and the rich, as the poor continue being poor and the rich continue to be richer. Corruption is the main cause of this; many of the African countries corrupt, making development partners reluctant to give aid to them. In some instances, development partners have withdrawn their aid due to corrupt practices (Calderisi, 2006). In fact, there is a continuing debate on whether or not developed countries should stop giving aid to African countries. Proponents of this idea argue that oftentimes the aid does not reach its intended beneficiaries. Some states that recognize the rights of gay people have threatened to cut their aid on countries that do not. The cutting of foreign aid by developing countries will adversely affect the lives of helpless people, who look upon the aid for survival.
The aid given to African countries is free money, which they are not required to pay back. Through it, the inefficient, or bad government will continue clinging in power. As free money continues to come in, the government is going to relax, and hence there are no economic developments (Lancaster, 1999). Some people will argue that if African countries were not given aid from outside, they would be far much ahead than they are today.
Their governments would work very hard to feed, clothe, and provide education and proper health care for its citizens, knowing that they are expecting nothing from outside. If developed countries agree on the decision to stop the aid, then so many innocent people are going to suffer. People will die of hunger, children will lack basic education, and so many people are going to lose their lives because of diseases (Poku, 2005). This is because; the governments of such countries will, of course, take very long to be able to offer the services that they were receiving from the outside world.
It has been an African culture to cure diseases, while other countries are preventing them. Most of the health facilities in African countries base their practices on curing diseases rather than preventing them. As a result, health complications affect people in these countries, sometimes leading to death. The number of deaths has somehow gone down due to the aid given to them from outside countries (Lancaster, 1999).
Some international organizations hold campaigns to prevent the spread of certain diseases, and hence reduce the rate of infection. Africa has got the highest percentage of HIV aids infections in the whole world (Poku, 2005). Donors are doing a lot of work in these African countries to help combat the further spread of the disease. If the donors stop foreign aid, many people will end up being infected, and hence the rate of deaths will increase.
Every city in Africa has slums, whereby people live far below the poverty line. The biggest slum in Africa is Kibera, which is in Nairobi, the capital city of Kenya. The slum, which is approximately one square mile, houses over one million people. Visiting this slum would give a person a glimpse of how poor people can be. There is no house made of bricks leave alone stones. All the ‘houses’ are made up of cardboards; the better ones are made of mud. There are piles of garbage everywhere, endangering the health of the people living there. In addition to that, the sewage system is open, and there is no running water (Calderisi, 2006).
Even with so many international organizations out to improve the livelihood of these people, the conditions are still something to pity. There have been established medical facilities for people from outside countries to help people take care of their health. On top of that, charitable organizations are out to improve the housing system in the slum. If this aid is cut, then it means that those people will continue living in pathetic conditions, which will, of course, deteriorate, and thus their lives will be endangered (Calderisi, 2006).
The education sector also profits greatly from foreign aid. From the aid given to African countries, many children have been able to access basic education. The rural areas of most African countries are a big mess. Most of those pupils who have been lucky to get basic education do it under very poor conditions. Classrooms are made of mud walls and floors. Even worse, some learn from outside because there are no classrooms, and they are made to endure the harsh weather conditions. As a result, many of them end up dropping out of school, and thus they start taking casual jobs at tender ages (Carlsson, Somolekae, Van & Nordiska 1997).
This is child abuse, but they have no other option because their parents are not in a position to take them to good schools. Aid from outside has made it better, and its continuing to do so as quality classrooms have been built for some. The schools have also been equipped with furniture and stationeries. Some African children are now able to learn under favorable conditions thanks to foreign aid. If foreign countries cut this aid, then African children are going to lack proper education.
Many contemporary international organizations protect the girl child. Lack of proper care for the girl child can lead to very big problems. The issue of female genital mutilation has been rampant in most African states. This is great torture to such young girls, and thus it deserves condemnation in the strongest terms possible. It has been the culture of most African communities to marry off their girls at a very young age, as early as even ten years old (Colletta, Balachander & Liang 1996).
As a result, these children drop out of school, and they lack the basic education that is important for survival. They also develop health complications because of bearing children at a tender age. International organizations have, therefore, embarked on giving the African girl child the rights she deserves through foreign aid. These organizations have rescued young girls from early marriages and sent them to school. They have been able to get access to the best quality type of education after that (Colletta, Balachander & Liang 1996). If foreign countries cut this aid, then the girl child will continue suffering since her rights will still be undermined.
The increasing rate of global warming has greatly affected African countries. The summers are becoming hotter than ever, while the winters are becoming colder and colder. This has hence changed the climatic patterns of many countries, and that has greatly affected food production (Carlsson, Somolekae, Van & Nordiska 1997). There are long periods of drought, which cannot sustain the proper growth of crops.
Most African countries depend on agriculture as a means of livelihood, and thus the levels of food production have greatly gone down due to the changing weather conditions. Therefore, African states are not able to feed their population widely. The outside world has come to their aid by providing foodstuffs, and many African people can afford to smile. In addition to that, they teach farmers how to improve their food production through the use of modern technology (Carlsson, Somolekae, Van & Nordiska 1997). Cutting this aid would mean the worst for these people.
Even with the much aid given to African states, they still pay a lot of money in debt repayment each year. Statistics put the figure at around twenty billion dollars even after the debt-relief campaigns in the 1990s (Joseph & Gillies 2008). These countries pay the debts at the expense of other needs like education and health care. At least, the countries receive some foreign aid to support the education of their children and to provide health care. Cutting that aid would mean that African countries would endure more debts, which would largely affect their economies.
Reference List
Calderisi, R. (2006). The trouble with Africa: Why foreign aid isn’t working. New York: Palgrave Macmillan.
Carlsson, J., Somolekae, G. M., Van, W. N., & Nordiska Afrikainstitutet. (1997). Foreign aid in Africa: Learning from country experiences. Uppsala: Nordiska Afrikainstitutet.
Colletta, N. J., Balachander, J., & Liang, X. (1996). The condition of young children in Sub-Saharan Africa: The convergence of health, nutrition, and early education. Washington D. C: World Bank.
Joseph, R. A., & Gillies, A. (2008). Smart aid for African development. Boulder, Colo: Lynne Rienner Publishers.
Lancaster, C. (1999). Aid to Africa: So much to do, so little done. Chicago [u.a.: Univ. of Chicago Press.
Poku, N. K. (2005). Aids in Africa: How the poor are dying. Cambridge [u.a: Polity.