The Pergau dam in Malaysia was the most controversial project in the history of British aid. Because of its high cost, it was a poor candidate for aid funding. It was provided in part to honour a highly irregular promise of civil aid in connection with a major arms deal. After two parliamentary inquiries and intense media coverage, in a landmark judgement the aid for Pergau was declared unlawful. Tim Lankester offers a detailed case study of this major aid project and of government decision-making in Britain and Malaysia. Exposing the roles played by key politicians and other stakeholders on both sides, he analyses the background to the aid/arms linkage, and the reasons why the British and Malaysian governments were so committed to the project, before exploring the response of Britain’s Parliament, and its media and NGOs, and the resultant legal case. The main causes of the Pergau debacle are carefully drawn out, from conflicting policy agendas within the British government to the power of the business lobby and the inability of Parliament to provide any serious challenge. Finally, Lankester asks whether, given what was known at the time and what we know now, he and his colleagues in Britain’s aid ministry were correct in their objections to the project. Pergau is still talked about as a prime example of how not to do aid. Tim Lankester, a key figure in the affair, is perfectly placed to provide the definitive account. At a time when aid budgets are under particular scrutiny, it provides a cautionary tale.

History of Britain's official international development efforts, beginning with its colonial era and then following the establishment of a new Ministry created by Prime Minister, the Rt Honourable Harold Wilson.

This is the first sustained comparative examination of the importance of media attention on the provision of economic assistance, suggesting that the news media is an important medium for policy makers to gauge potential domestic political pressures and thus the need to be responsive and even anticipatory in addressing problems real or perceived. Particular attention is paid to the responsiveness of bureaucracies, long held to be among the most insulated institutions of government. Cross-national in scope, this book looks at the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, France and Japan, facilitating a nuanced understanding of the interaction of international and domestic politics as mediated by the media.

Provided for over 60 years, and expanding more rapidly today than it has for a generation, foreign aid is now a $100bn business. But does it work? Indeed, is it needed at all? In this first-ever, overall assessment of aid, Roger Riddell provides a rigorous but highly readable account of aid, warts and all.

Debunking the current model of international aid promoted by both Hollywood celebrities and policy makers, Moyo offers a bold new road map for financing development of the world's poorest countries.

Margaret Thatcher's government pledged in 1980 to give greater weight to political, industrial, and commercial considerations in aid allocation. The contributors to this volume, who include economists, political scientists, and practitioners working in the aid field, examine how this policy change came to be made, and what it has meant for the country's aid program and for Britain's relationship with the developing world. Distributed by St. Martin's. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

Aid to Africa is concerned with aid to Africa south of the Sahara, excluding the Republic of South Africa, an area containing 188 million persons, only about 13 per cent of the inhabitants of all underdeveloped areas. Particular attention is given to British aid policy, and hence with the fifteen UK and ex-UK territories, which receive almost all British aid to Africa south of the Sahara. They also account for half of the world total of UK aid. The first three chapters deal with certain problems of African economies which need to be appreciated as a background to aid policy. These include population growth and the problem of absorptive capacity. The next four chapters focus on aid and aid policy, covering the use of aid and its supervision, donors' policies, UK aid policy, and technical assistance. The final chapter draws some conclusions. Among these is that the emphasis of aid to Africa needs to shift to agriculture and rural development. Partly for this reason, the UK should enter more closely into the design of projects and the operation of programs.