Doctors surprised by politics

Swahili Street and Aid Watch have great comments on a recent Lancet article. The article found that when donors increase spending on health, governments in recipient countries reduce spending in this area. Swahili Street and Aid Watchers responded with a collective “DUH!” When donors decide to spend in one area, it makes perfect sense for the government to spend less and shift those funds to a different priority. Anyone with a basic comprehension of politics would be aware of this. The true shock is is not the finding, but that anyone finds it surprising. Swahili Street hits the nail on the head:

Donor agencies and international funding NGOs need to better understand the political and social context in which they operate…One donor country in Tanzania has identified “corruption, fraud and lack of transparency in the government system” as the principal risk to their support. That’s not a risk – that’s the reality; one expression of how political power is gained and wielded.

The is is the central point of the report on Tanzania I am writing for USAID (to be released soon – will definitely post).

Laura Freschi at Aid Watch makes a similar point, but gets major bonus points for cheekiness:

The Lancet findings are scandalous, relative to the naïve but widespread belief that donors can use earmarked aid to force bad governments to behave.

Ha!