Storbritannien vil skære i bistanden til de udviklinglande, som ikke investerer tilstrækkeligt i deres egne befolkninger, advarer landets nye udviklingsminister Penny Mourdant, som tiltrådte stillingen i november 2017.
Penny Mourdant har de seneste dage optrådt i blandt andet BBC Radio 1 og skrevet et opsigtsvækkende indlæg i avisen The Telegraph med ét gennemgående budskab til verdens fattigste lande: “Storbritannien vil ikke investere der, hvor andre burde grave dybere i egne lommer.”.
I et indlægget i The Telegraph skriver udviklingsministeren blandt andet:
“I want the governments of developing countries to step up and take responsibility for investing in their own people, in healthcare or education, for example. If [they choose] not to, that will inform our decisions around our funding. We will continue to prioritise investments in saving lives, tackling undernutrition, improving health and getting kids a quality education. But our focus will increasingly be on helping developing countries stand on their own feet and build sustainable health and education systems that they invest in themselves.”
I en reaktion på udviklingsministeren udmeldninger, udtaler Romilly Greenhill fra fortaler- og kampagneorganisationen One Campaign, til avisen The Guardian, at man principielt er enig i behovet for at udviklingslandene tager ansvar og investerer i deres egne befolkninger, men organisationen advarer udviklingsministeren mod at trække bistandmidler væk fra de lande, som har mest brug for det.
Samme holdning deles af Alex Their, som er direktør i Overseas Development Institute:
“She is articulating a principle that we should focus more of our assistance on promoting sustainability and assistance so that countries can lift themselves up. I agree with that. However, it’s important to apply that to the people and countries where it is needed most. The goal should not be to pull away from countries that are struggling and only invest in countries that are doing well.” udtaler han til The Guardian.
Læs Penny Mordauts indlæg i avisen The Telegraph (paywall) her
