Official Development Assistance (ODA): Are There Correlations Between ODA and Corruption in Sub-Saharan Africa?

Abstract

Abstract Taking a broad-brush view of the past 60 years of official development assistance (ODA) in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), leading to a decision that ODA is a total failure for all SSA countries, is both misleading and unsupported by credible evidence. It discredits the good that has been achieved in African countries like Botswana, where genuine interest in sustainable development between recipient and donor nation (e.g., Botswana and United Kingdom) resulted in numerous desired outcomes. However, it must also be said that sustainable development through ODA in many SSA countries has been disappointing. Historically, ODA funds were given by the donor directly to a developing country. But ineffective ODA is a problem that must be looked at from two prisms: (1) ineffective ODA as a result of rampant corruption among African state government leaders (recipients), and (2) detrimental trading practices by wealthy Western donor nations. This thesis addresses ODA from the perspective of what makes ODA ineffective, and what are the major impediments still apparent today. Some critics suggest that SSA countries have not been given sufficient funds by donor nations to spur sustainable development; other critics allege that the funds dispersed by wealthy Western nations for the past 60 years were wasted to begin with and not needed—leading to the further assumption that such unneeded funding disappeared into the bank accounts of African leaders to enrich their personal fortunes. Although there is no definitive way to conclude whether one set of critics or the other is right, each has played a part in the overall systemic failure of ODA for countries in sub-Saharan Africa.