6.7 Aid flows from Development Assistance Committee countries See Table 6.7 here

Commentary
About the data
Definitions
Data sources

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Net aid to developing countries has stagnated or declined over the past decade. Measured in constant 1994 dollars, net official development assistance (ODA) received by developing countries remained in the range of $54–$61 billion during 1986–94. During the same period the share of net ODA in Development Assistance Committee (DAC) members’ combined GNP dropped from 0.33 percent to 0.29 percent, the lowest level since 1973 (figure 6.7a). This is expected to decline further in 1995 to about 0.27 percent on average. This overall decline conceals a change in burden sharing among DAC members, with some, including the United States and Italy, reducing their contributions, while Japan has become the largest donor (figure 6.7b).

Among the factors contributing to the decline in aid, the most significant is the budgetary problems facing DAC countries. This factor can be best seen in aid appropriations, for which most DAC countries reported a decline in 1994. But some countries have increased their contributions of official aid to part II countries at the same time that their ODA contributions for part I countries have declined. By 1994 net official aid accounted for 11.7 percent of DAC members’ concessional assistance, with the largest increases going to Central and Eastern European countries. The increase in official aid still does not offset the decline in ODA, however.

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As part of its work, DAC assesses the aid performance of member countries relative to the size of their economies. As measured here, aid comprises bilateral disbursements of concessional financing to recipient countries plus the provision by donor governments of concessional financing to multilateral institutions. Volume measures, in constant prices and exchange rates, are used to measure the change in real resources provided over time. Aid flows to part I recipients—ODA—are tabulated separately from official aid to part II recipients.

Measures of aid flows from the perspective of donors will differ from aid receipts by the recipient countries. This is because the concessional funding received by multilateral institutions from donor countries is recorded as an aid disbursement by the donor when the funds are deposited with the multilateral institution and recorded as a resource receipt by the recipient country when the multilateral institution makes a disbursement.

Aid to GNP ratios, aid per capita, and aid appropriations as a percentage of donor government budgets are calculated by the OECD. The denominators used in calculating these ratios may differ from corresponding values elsewhere in this book because of differences in timing or definition.

• Net official development assistance and net official aid record the actual international transfer by the donor of financial resources or of goods or services valued at the cost to the donor, less any repayments of loan principal during the same period. Data are shown at current prices and dollar exchange rates.

• Aid as percentage of GNP shows the donor’s contributions of ODA or official aid as a percentage of its GNP.

• Annual average percentage change in volume and aid per capita of donor country are calculated using 1994 exchange rates and prices.

• Aid appropriations are the percentage share of ODA or official aid appropriations in national budgets.

Data in this table appear in the DAC chairman’s report, Development Co-operation. The OECD also makes its data available on diskette and magnetic tape and the Internet.

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