Aid Donors Told: Stop Loaning Money to Arroyo

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PUBLISHED ON March 27, 2008 AT 7:56 AM

2. Philippine experience with ODA-funded projects exacerbates conditions that sustain poverty and inequality. Development management processes that encompasses strategic planning, implementation and assessment—from which all foreign-funded development projects should be based upon—is not inclusive, transparent, accountable nor coherent with rights-based aspirations of the poor and marginalized in society. A collective/ communal response from civil society organizations is urgently needed to address these basic problems that lie behind longstanding problems associated with ODA.

3. Exorcising and dismantling the evils associated with the current crisis in ODA requires that civil society be given full play in holding donors and the government to account in implementing and enriching the principles of aid effectiveness, as well as empowering the poor and marginalized to assert their rights. Concrete steps need to be initiated towards strengthening empowerment, local capacity, participation, transparency, leadership and joint responsibility. Aid reforms need to be undertaken through the establishment of a broader and more equitable governance system for ODA.

The civil society groups also said that ODA’s longstanding (structural) inadequacies and failings negate its avowed purpose and its effectiveness. Hence, the Filipino people do not need:

* Aid that does not go to their intended beneficiaries and does not effectively contribute to social development and poverty alleviation;
* Aid that is “tied” to onerous and disadvantageous conditions;
* Aid that helps degrade the environment and violates the rights of people; and
* Indiscriminate aid that simply increases the national debt burden.

The following are their recommendations to donor governments and multilateral institutions:

* Increase and improve the quality of aid allotments
* Realign the loan-grant mix to favor the latter
* Increase the share of projects on human and social development
* Realign regional and provincial distribution of aid to poorer areas
* Address social and environmental concerns
* End all tied aid
* De-link aid from the war on terror, particularly in Mindanao
* Reform technical assistance to respond to national priorities and build capacity.

The following are the groups’ recommendations to the Philippine government:

* Fix implementation problems
* Plug the hemorrhage of government funds in repaying loans
* Address the foreign consultants’ issue
* End human rights violations in aid projects
* Focus on long-term and alternative sources of development financing
* Strictly follow the legal requirements in negotiating loan agreements
* Adopt a policy of transparency and popular participation
* Draw up comprehensive and consistent ODA performance standards
* Re-evaluate government policies and thrusts on ODA
* Adopt a policy of preferential option for untied aid

The Philippines Development Forum or PDF is the primary mechanism of the government in facilitating substantive policy dialogue among stakeholders on the country’s development agenda. It also serves as a process to generate commitments among development partners, funding agencies and different stakeholders.

The last PDF formal meeting was held 8-9 March 2007 in Cebu with participants from Government, Multilateral (ADB, WB IMF) and Bilateral Donors (e.g. UK, US) and international development partners (OPEC, UN), and other stakeholders. (pinoypress.net)

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