Lessons in foreign aid from a trip to Uganda

When President Trump and Elon Mask brought the shutters down on USAID, I was reminded of things I had seen and heard in Uganda last month while conducting development research there — things that should make us rethink stereotypes about foreign aid and its effectiveness.

Trump is liked among the poor of Kampala, Uganda’s capital. The influence of evangelical Christian groups in Uganda, mostly American, led to draconian legal measures being enacted against the country’s gay and transgender populations in May 2023. President Biden responded by cutting off foreign aid to Uganda. The foreign policy measure did not go over well with the conservative religious populations of Uganda, which is 46 percent evangelical, 36 percent Catholic and 14 percent Muslim.

Several people told me they looked forward to President Trump restoring foreign aid. Shop owners in Kampala’s Owino Market spoke in gushing terms about Trump.

Many Ugandans love strong men and authoritarian figures, who are lauded on local radio talk shows. On a trip through downtown Kampala, I saw public minibuses and boda bodas, or motorcycle taxis, with stickers of Putin, Idi Amin and even Hitler.

A trip to Owino Market — bustling with hundreds of low-end shops and eateries that cater to the poor — illuminates the liberal end of generosity. Books donated from the West for African readers find their way here to be sold for recycling and made into paper bags and other products. My local guide, with a graduate degree in sociology, made fun of books he randomly picked up — from old copies of Encyclopedia Britannica to sci-fi books in English — that most poor Ugandans cannot read.

Three miles away, a fancy boutique store recycles clothes donated from the West with stylish refurbishments to turn them into haute couture. The clothing line is called “Return to Sender” and meant for high-end stores in Europe.

Jacqueline Novogratz’s 2009 book “The Blue Sweater” touched many a heart in the West. The author found a young girl in Rwanda wearing a sweater that the author once wore. The book is about our interconnections, but it can equally be read as liberal paternalism. Starting in 2016, the East African Community of eight countries began to ban imports of used clothing.

Foreign aid scholars have stayed mostly silent over the last month. Most of their work has gone into showing how foreign aid is about donor motivations and domestic politics in the U.S. America and other powerful nations often get poorer countries to follow their interests through clever deployments of foreign aid. In these terms, Trump shutting down foreign aid is more of a case of cutting off the nose to spite the face.

There is one thing about which Musk is partially correct: Many aspects of foreign aid amount to corruption, albeit mostly in America. Foreign aid allows American farmers and manufacturers, many of whom vote Republican, to get funds so they can sell their wheat and medicines (if not donated) to be supplied to countries in need. More than 10,000 USAID employees and another 10,000 at USAID’s contracting agencies in the U.S. draw their salaries from the disbursement of foreign aid funds. Che m onics, the biggest USAID grant agency with 5,000 employees, even makes annual profits from foreign aid. A majority of American foreign aid might actually feed Americans.

Early critics of foreign aid from the time USAID was created included the prominent development economist Peter Bauer, who wrote about creating dependencies, corruption and destroying local economies. More recently, Dambisa Moyo in her book “Dead Aid” wrote that millions in Africa are poor because of aid.

Despite these grand critiques, political economists have carefully examined the conditions under which foreign aid can work to improve the lives of the poor. These are the “micro” places to start reforming foreign aid, which are indeed necessary. Instead, Musk turned the debate into a “macro” spectacle of surreal proportions.

There are also parts of foreign aid, especially humanitarian aid, that cushion the effect of the world’s worst diseases, disasters and atrocities. It makes one human being empathize with the conditions of another in a different part of the world. People remember the food they received in refugee camps, or the medicines during a pandemic.

Finally, foreign aid allows one to be a good neighbor. One way to live with our neighbors is to continually yell and scream at them. Another option is to build goodwill. One could send them tiny gifts that may matter more to us than to them but have the appearance of generosity. They are part of countries’ “public diplomacy” to make others do what we want.

In transactional terms, Trump is letting go of an effective instrument to persuade countries into following American interests, or goad them to export precious minerals and primary products. Midwestern wheat and Delaware medicines generate goodwill. China smiles as Trump retreats.

Meanwhile, the average American continues to vastly overcalculate the tiny amount of the U.S. budget devoted to foreign aid, and 60 percent of Americans polled also think foreign aid is wasted on corruption. It raises a question that hasn’t been asked. Who is more corrupt, the donor or the recipient?

J.P. Singh is Distinguished University Professor at George Mason University and Richard von Weizsäcker Fellow with the Robert Bosch Academy (Berlin). He is co-editor-in-chief of Global Perspectives.

Topics

The Influence of Foreign Aid

America is losing a diplomatic tool the government has relied on for decades.
The New York Times - 21h
The F.B.I.’s New Boss, and the Foreign Aid Fallout

Plus, a James Bond takeover.
The New York Times - 22h
As the U.S. Exits Foreign Aid, Who Will Fill the Gap?

China could reap the soft-power advantage, but like Western governments, the country is cutting back on aid. Philanthropies say they cannot replace the United States.
The New York Times - 4h
Ecuador will seek foreign military aid to combat drug cartels as violence surges

The government of Ecuador has taken another step in its effort to gain help from foreign military forces to combat drug cartels and various organized crime groups
ABC News - 2d
Instacart CEO Fidji Simo: 3 lessons on reaching the top of U.S. tech from a French fishing port childhood

Fidji Simo rose from a village childhood to Meta executive, taking Instacart public as CEO, and OpenAI board post. She shares some key lessons for success.
CNBC - 14h
Trump's foreign aid freeze halted a crucial program fighting HIV in Africa. Here's what's at stake

The freeze on U.S. foreign aid ordered by President Donald Trump has effectively halted one of the world's most successful responses to a disease
ABC News - 2d
Trump administration hasn't complied with order to halt foreign aid freeze, judge says

The Trump administration has not fully complied with a court order pausing the freezing of foreign assistance grants and contracts, a federal judge ruled.
NBC News - 1d
Facing pressure from Trump, Costa Rica and Honduras join Panama as stopovers for foreign deportees

A U.S. flight carrying 135 deportees, half of them minors from various countries, is set to land in Costa Rica, making the country the latest Latin American nation to serve as a stopover as U.S. ...
ABC News - 1d
Velis speaks out about importance of Israel trip

Yahoo News - 10h
With Just 3 Words, Delta Air Lines Taught a Powerful Lesson in Handling a Crisis

The airline is offering affected customers $30,000 without forcing them to give up their rights.
Inc. - 20h
Vance: Biggest threat to Europe is influx of 'unvetted foreign migrants'

During an appearance at CPAC, Vice President JD Vance said he believed the "biggest threat" to countries in Europe was "unvetted foreign migrants," and criticized the Biden administration for its ...
NBC News - 1d
Trump Dismantles Government Fight Against Foreign Influence Operations

Dozens of employees who had been working to fight foreign interference in U.S. elections have been reassigned or forced out, according to current and former officials.
The New York Times - 1d
Fresh executive order targets sanctuary cities, federal aid for undocumented migrants

The action marks Trump’s latest attempt to crack down on illegal immigration.
Politico - 1d
International aid groups axe thousands of jobs in wake of Trump funding freeze

Fears that cuts will ‘decimate’ ability to react to crises as sector loses expertise and skills at every level, report finds. Some of the world’s largest aid organisations are axing thousands of ...
The Guardian - 22h
Daughter of aid worker beheaded by ISIS reads final texts at trial

Bethany Haines read out the last text message she would ever receive from her father, David Haines, before he was abducted and killed by ISIS over a decade ago.
CBS News - 17h
USAID aid freeze triggers health care crisis in Africa

USAID's 90-day freeze on all services has resulted in a significant loss of trust, critical health care, food aid, and medical supplies, causing life-threatening consequences for Malawian patients, ...
The Hill - 15h
Israel closes main crossing for aid deliveries to the Gaza Strip

Yahoo News - 15h
Trump administration resumes legal aid for unaccompanied migrant children

Groups like Acacia and Kids in Need of Defense called the stop-worker "devastating."
ABC News - 11h
California wildfire aid will come with 'strings,' says Trump envoy Grenell

The Trump administration will place “strings” on the recovery assistance it gives to California after the state faced deadly wildfires, Trump envoy Richard Grenell said Friday. “The federal ...
The Hill - 12h
Trump administration restores legal aid for unaccompanied immigrant children

A stop-work order had been issued to government-funded attorneys to cease counsel for about 26,000 minors. The Trump administration has rescinded its decision to cut off legal aid for ...
The Guardian - 9h
G20 meeting of foreign ministers gets underway in South Africa amid tensions with US

Foreign ministers from G20 countries will meet in Johannesburg on Thursday, but U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio will not attend amid diplomatic tensions between South Africa and the U.S. ...
ABC News - 2d
NATO holds military drills as leaders express concerns over Trump's shifting foreign policy

In Romania, which shares a border with Ukraine, NATO is holding its largest combat exercises of the year. The drills come as European leaders are expressing rising concern over the military ...
CBS News - 1d
Taiwan holds its breath as Trump turns on Ukraine and upends US foreign policy

The mood in Taipei is one of wariness as the new US president takes a blowtorch to diplomatic norms and assurances. It’s a bustling morning at the Dongmen wet market, in inner-city Taipei. Mr Yu is ...
The Guardian - 1d
China supports 'recent consensus' between US and Russia on Ukraine war, foreign minister says

China supports “the recent consensus” between the U.S. and Russia on the war in Ukraine, said Wang Yi, the country’s foreign minister, amid ongoing discussions about bringing an end to the nearly ...
The Hill - 1d
Trump 'doesn't care' what happens to Ukraine, former foreign minister claims as U.S.-Kyiv relations sour

U.S. President Donald Trump doesn't appear to be concerned about Ukraine's post-war future, the country's former Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba told CNBC.
CNBC - 18h
This USAID Program Made Food Aid More Efficient for Decades. DOGE Gutted It Anyways

The Famine Early Warning Systems Network is one of USAID’s most data-driven programs, but its work has been stalled by the Trump administration.
Wired - 2d
Emergency Food, TB Tests and H.I.V. Drugs: Vital Health Aid Remains Frozen Despite Court Ruling

The Trump administration appears to be flouting a judge’s order pausing the dismantling of U.S.A.I.D.
The New York Times - 1d
US aid freeze puts HIV-positive orphans in Kenya at risk as medical supplies dwindle

A U.S. aid freeze is threatening the lives of HIV-positive orphans at Nyumbani Children’s Home in Nairobi
ABC News - 1d
McConnell announces retirement from the Senate

Politico - 1d
Here's the Extent of the Fallout From Trump's HHS Purge

This is a MedPage Today story. Thousands of employees of federal health agencies have been let go in a chaotic and slow-rolling Trump administration purge over the holiday weekend. While the ...
ABC News - 2d
TikTok Taps Climeworks to Remove CO2 From the Atmosphere

The announcement comes as the Trump Administration has thrown emerging climate-related tech like direct air capture into flux.
Inc. - 2d
How to Bring a Zombie Unicorn Back From the Dead

A record-breaking 1,200 startups with a billion-dollar valuation have turned into dead weight.
Inc. - 1d
Trump admin removes migrants from Guantanamo Bay

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers have removed deported migrants from a facility on the U.S. military base in Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, where the Trump administration brought them as ...
The Hill - 1d
5 takeaways from Musk's CPAC talk

Elon Musk served as one of the main attractions at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) on Thursday evening with a late-scheduled appearance that saw him wield a chainsaw and discuss ...
The Hill - 1d
Exclusive discounts from CBS Mornings Deals

On this edition of CBS Mornings Deals, we show you items that might just become essentials in your everyday life. Visit cbsdeals.com to take advantage of these exclusive deals today. CBS earns ...
CBS News - 18h
The digital tool protecting Ukrainian architecture from war

Yahoo News - 11h
Pope is sitting up out of bed at hospital as he recovers from pneumonia

Pope Francis is continuing his recovery from pneumonia
ABC News - 2d
Watch: Tourists warned to stay away from Mount Etna lava

Italian authorities say people have been injured after venturing too close to the red-hot lava.
BBC News - 1d
Amazon to gain creative control of James Bond franchise from Broccoli family

Amazon reached a deal with the Broccoli family, the James Bond franchise's longstanding producers, to form a new joint venture.
CNBC - 1d

More in Politics

NYC Mayor Eric Adams' corruption case continues for now, judge rules

A judge in New York City Mayor Eric Adams' corruption case has appointed an outside attorney to argue over the Department of Justice's request to drop the federal charges.
CBS News - 4h
FBI told to transfer 1,500 personnel from headquarters: Reports

The FBI told managers that 1,500 personnel will be transferred from the headquarters near Washington headquarters to offices around the country, including around a third being placed in an Alabama ...
The Hill - 4h
Trump removes Brown, names new Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman

President Trump has fired Air Force Gen. CQ Brown Jr., a four-star pilot, and named Air Force Lt. Gen. Dan “Razin” Caine to be the country’s next chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. “I want to ...
The Hill - 5h
Trump scores big legal wins, but efforts to reshape government still face court hurdles

The Trump administration's efforts to swiftly remake the federal government notched some big wins in court this week — including a ruling that allows its firing spree to continue — but a number of ...
NBC News - 6h
Trump fires chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff CQ Brown

President Donald Trump fired Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman CQ Brown Jr., the country's highest-ranking military officer, from his position. This comes amid a wave of administration changes under ...
NBC News - 6h