NZ continues to perform poorly in level of aid – OECD

New Zealand’s position on aid makes it an embarrassment at the OECD and other international aid forums, says Rae Julian, Executive Director of the Council for International Development.

The latest figures released by the OECD show that New Zealand has made no progress in increasing the percentage of official international aid we give. The New Zealand government gives 0.27 percent of Gross National Income in aid – well below the OECD average of 0.46 percent. Our contribution is well off target for reaching the internationally-agreed goal of giving 0.7 percent of income in aid by 2015.

“Despite signing up to Millennium Development Goals to halve extreme poverty by 2015, our government has failed to set a timetable to contribute to the agreed level of aid needed in order to achieve these goals. This year is the halfway point to the 2015 deadline. We are running out of time if the government is genuine about its commitment.”

“I have just come back from a meeting at the OECD on aid effectiveness. People there asked why New Zealand’s position is so low on the OECD Development Assistance Committee ranking – currently 17th of 22 countries. I had no answer.

“We ask how serious our government is in playing an international role when we remain significantly below the rest of the developed world in the amount of aid we deliver on an income basis. This is a key area that we could contribute to and one that would give our government international credibility,” says Ms Julian.

Once again, CID calls on the government to significantly increase aid in the May budget and to also set in place a timetable to reach 0.7 percent of aid by 2015.

ENDS

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