MacroscopeAid decisions at UN conference crucial for poorest nations

In Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, world leaders will have a golden opportunity this week to reshape how they help developing countries grow and prosper. They must not waste it.

The three-day United Nations Conference on Financing for Development is crucial for the poorest nations on the planet. These “least-developed countries” have been screwed of late. Their already small share of the global aid pie has shrunk by 6 per cent since 2010.

Yet these are the countries where international aid matters the most. Where it is essential to build decent health and education systems and boost investment in agriculture and infrastructure. Addis Ababa won’t be a success unless it moves the rich world to commit more resources to the very poorest among us.

But this conference is about more than money. It is no less important for the richer of the poor countries - those approaching middle-income levels. For them, real help would include international reforms to crack down on corruption. That way, the staggering scale of illicit capital flight from the poor world to sun-drenched islands in the Caribbean or lawyers’ offices in London could be tackled. Resources could be spent on making people’s lives better rather than on villas in the south of France.

You can see the distinct outcomes that different countries need from Addis Ababa by looking at Tanzania and Nigeria.