From Africa Recovery, Vol.12#4 (April 1999), Briefs page

EU shifts aid away from most needy

Only two of the top 10 recipients of European Union (EU) aid in 1996-97 were least developed countries and none of the top seven was a "low-income" country, according to a report by the international development committee of Britain's House of Commons. EU multilateral aid policy currently gives "more to the better off and less to the poor," while spending plans for the next seven years continue to neglect the needs of the world's poorest countries, says the report.

EU member Germany announced in November 1998 that it would cut back bilateral aid to sub-Saharan Africa from this year. A spokesperson for the Ministry of Economic

Co-operation and Development in Bonn reportedly said that from 1999, Germany would shift more aid to eastern Europe, where it aims to boost development and stem the flow of job seekers to Germany.

In contrast, France is shifting its focus to the most needy countries in its bilateral aid allocations, though it has been channeling increasing amounts of aid through the EU. As part of an overhaul to make its bilateral aid more efficient and transparent, France recently announced plans to draw up a list of countries deemed priority aid recipients. Half of French aid now goes to sub-Saharan Africa and 15 per cent goes to North Africa. France spends nearly 0.45 per cent of its gross national product on aid - the largest proportion of any member of the Group of Seven industrial nations.

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