Teach a Man to Fish: Can Aid Restrict a Country’s Ability to Grow?

As the ancient Chinese proverb goes, “Give a man a fish and you’ll feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you’ll feed him for a lifetime.”

Efforts to raise aid for Africa have been going on for half a century. Yet, why is the country’s poverty still disproportionate to the staggering amounts of money raised? Have we been throwing money at the poor and hoping it will pay off? Aren’t we better off teaching Africa to fend for itself?

A fundamental problem that has arisen with the administration of aid is the understanding of how it should reach the intended recipients. This complicated issue can cause the money to be misdirected by the government of the poor country.

To cite a historical example, the singer Bob Geldoff’s star-studded Live Aid concerts of July 1985 staged a worldwide awareness of the poverty-stricken country of Ethiopia. Between £50 and £70 million was raised in total and Geldoff was duly praised for making fundraising history.

Some of the money was put to good use. But, as David Rieff reported in the Guardian in June 2005, a lot of the money ended up fuelling the controversial resettlement programme in Ethiopia, which involved 600,000 people being forcibly moved from the North to the Southwest of the country. Disguised as an effort to relieve the heavily populated area of the North, the procedure was brutally controlled by the Dergue (socialist ruling body) and led to the death of around 100,000 people. The report added that post-Live Aid, Geldoff was left pondering why Africa’s poverty was getting worse.

Of course, in circumstances based on a better understanding of a country’s political structure, aid can offer a helping hand. But for how long will the effects last? And can aid instigate a deeper level of change?

An article published by Dr. Tajudeen Abdul-Raheem, Deputy Director of the UN Millennium Campaign, concluded with a fundamental truth:

“Maybe the real meeting Africans and other poor countries need to have is about a future without aid.”

The organisation, Hives Save Lives, teaches Africans to become effective beekeepers and produce their own honey. The charity demonstrates the value of teaching life-enhancing skills to individuals from disadvantaged countries. This encourages independence and enables the people of Africa to earn their own living instead of relying on hand outs.