On these threads, many have lamented how we , US, seem to be the only one giving aid and spending $ , as some here say we don't have, to others , and it is getting old.
I knew this was not true , being the only aid giver, but few wanted to hear this.
China, is a big giver of aid too, but so are other countries. In $ or their equivalent, possible not as large as we but very, very substantial and in India's case it seems it is giving to the poorest, the ones who really need it, and not just $ but real help, technical and training and education to those who don't get as much, Africa.
Also, unlike the Chinese for example who come in with hugh chinese workers who live in basically ghetto's , the Indians recruity and hitre locals ansd when the decvelopeemnt is done, leave trained personnel, managers behind to continue the work.
These countries can also relate to India, as it was not that long ago India was in the same position as they and still has problems, so the ability to relate tio the Indian model is much easier then trying to emulate China or the USA.
They, India, got his way by modernizing their Economy, making $, investing into their future, as some here want to do but others saying we can't afford it.
Well they did invest and it paid off and will continue to pay off and I am sure these countries and peoples they help will remember as they improve in position, their economy 's grow, IMHO, they will become very good customers for Indian goods and cooperation.
Naturally, IMHO.
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english.aljazeera.net/indepth/opinion/2011/06/201161410198655929.html-----------------------------------------------------
[Click on link to go to article]
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Opinion
India gives
In the recent India-Africa summit in Ethiopia, India emerged as a source rather than a recipient of foreign aid.
Shashi Tharoor Last Modified: 18 Jun 2011 09:49
"The recent India-Africa summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, at which India's government pledged $5bn in aid to African countries, drew attention to a largely overlooked phenomenon - India's emergence as a source, rather than a recipient, of foreign aid.
For decades after independence - when Britain left the subcontinent one of the poorest and most ravaged regions on earth, with an effective growth rate of zero per cent over the preceding two centuries - India was seen as an impoverished land of destitute people, desperately in need of international handouts. Many developed countries showcased their aid to India; Norway, for example, established in 1959 its first-ever aid program there.
But, with the liberalisation of the Indian economy in 1991, the country embarked upon a period of dizzying growth, averaging nearly eight per cent each year since then. During this time, India weaned itself from dependence on aid, preferring to borrow from multilateral lenders and, increasingly, from commercial banks. Most foreign aid programs - with the sole exception of Britain's - have dwindled or been eliminated altogether.
Today, the proverbial shoe is on the other foot. Long known for its rhetorical faith in South-South cooperation, India has begun putting its money where only its mouth used to be. It has now emerged as a significant donor to developing countries in Africa and Asia, second only to China in the range and quantity of development assistance given by countries of the global south.
Money to spend
The Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation Program (ITEC) was established in 1964, but now has real money to offer, in addition to training facilities and technological know-how. Nationals from 156 countries have benefited from ITEC grants, which have brought developing country students to Indian universities for courses in everything from software development to animal husbandry.
In addition, India has built factories, hospitals, and parliaments in various countries, and sent doctors, teachers, and IT professionals to treat and train the nationals of recipient countries. Concessional loans at trifling interest rates (between 0.25 per cent and 0.75 per cent, well below the cost of servicing the loans) are also extended as lines of credit, tied mainly to the purchase of Indian goods and services, and countries in Africa have been clamouring for them.
In Asia, India remains by far the largest single donor to its neighbor Bhutan, as well as a generous aid donor to Nepal, the Maldives, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka as it recovers from civil war. Given Afghanistan's vital importance for the security of the subcontinent, India's assistance program there already amounts to more than $1.2bn - modest from the standpoint of Afghan needs, but large for a non-traditional donor - and it is set to rise further.
India's efforts in Afghanistan have focused on humanitarian infrastructure, social projects, and development of skills and capacity. Five Indian medical missions provide treatment and free medicines to more than 1,000 patients a day, most of them poor women and children. The Indian-built Indira Gandhi Centre for Child Health in Kabul is connected through a telemedicine link with two specialty medical centres in India."
