By Robert Johnson

PARIS (IDN) — Though ODA-official development assistance from members of the OECD’s DAC-Development Assistance Committee rose to a new high last year, it amounted to the equivalent of only 0.33 per cent of their combined GNI-gross national income, thus falling short of a United Nations goal to reach an ODA/GNI ratio of 0.7%.

The biggest ODA givers by volume in 2021 were the United States (USD 47.8 billion), Germany (USD 33.3 billion), Japan (USD 17.6 billion), the United Kingdom (USD 15.7 billion), and France (USD 15.5 billion).

But only five of DAC members met or surpassed the 0.7% ODA/GNI target: Denmark (0.71%), Germany (0.76%), Luxembourg (0.99%), Norway (0.93%) and Sweden (0.91%).

Amongst providers that report to the OECD that are not DAC members, Saudi Arabia reported an ODA/GNI ratio of 1.05% and Turkey at 0.96%.

The top recipients of DAC countries’ bilateral net ODA were India (USD 5.2 billion), Bangladesh (USD 3.6 billion), Afghanistan (USD 3.4 billion), Ethiopia (USD 2.5 billion), and Jordan (USD 2.4 billion).

ODA from members of the OECD DAC countries totalled USD 185.9 billion in 2021, an upwards revision from the provisional figure of USD 179 billion released in April, due mostly to an update to US ODA estimates.

The 2021 total marks an 8.5% rise in real terms (i.e., adjusted for inflation and exchange rate fluctuations) compared to 2020 due mostly to COVID-19 support, particularly in the form of vaccine donations.

Excluding vaccine donations, 2021 ODA would have totalled USD 179.6 billion, up 4.8% in real terms from 2020.

DAC countries spent USD 21.9 billion on COVID-19-related activities in 2021, representing about 12% of their combined net ODA. Within this total, USD 11.1 billion were spent on support related to COVID-19 control (e.g., prevention, treatment and care), as well as vaccine donations, while the rest was spent on humanitarian aid and macro-economic support.

Total 2021 ODA included USD 181.4 billion in the form of grants, loans to sovereign entities, debt relief and contributions to multilateral institutions (calculated on a grant-equivalent basis*); USD 1.2 billion to development-oriented private sector instrument (PSI) vehicles and USD 3.3 billion in the form of net loans and equities to private companies operating in ODA-eligible countries.

Preliminary ODA statistics for 2022 are due to be published in April 2023. [IDN-InDepthNews — 20 December 2022]

Credit: OECD