Title

Aid Effectiveness Revisited: Comparative Studies of Modalities of Aid to Asia and Africa

Abstract

This paper provides a variety of evidence that shows that in Asia, aid leveraged private investment in the long run, while in Africa the correlation between aid and domestic investment was at best ambiguous. Aid in Africa was diametrically opposite to that of Asia in terms of the amounts the countries received, the sector compositions, the size of individual projects, and the intensity of donor involvement. The sharp contrast in aid effectiveness between Asia and Africa could be attributed at least in part to those differences in the modality of aid delivery. Based on the above analysis, the paper concludes with a few suggestions that could link aid more closely to private investment, and avoid pitfalls that Africa experienced.

Keywords: official development assistance
       aid effectiveness
       foreign direct investment
       East Asia
       Sub-Saharan Africa

JEL Classification: O19, O20

Hiroyuki HINO
Research Institute for Economics and Business Administration
Kobe University
Rokkodai-cho, Nada-ku, Kobe
657-8501 Japan
Phone: (81) 78 803 7036
Fax: (81) 78 803 7059

Atsushi IIMI
The World Bank