INTERNATIONAL AID BUSINESS VOCABULARY IN USE (ADVANCED)

 

BUSINESS VOCABULARY IN USE (ADVANCED) 49. INTERNATIONAL AID

 

A Humanitarian aid When there are extreme situations, aid agencies such as Oxfam or Medecins Sans Frontieres play an important role. These situations include war, natural disasters such as earthquakes or floods, and famine –when people do not have enough to eat, for example following crop failure. Emergency relief is provided in the form of supplies, medical assistance, and so on. This is part of humanitarian aid. B Development aid Aid agencies and donor countries also give development aid, and so contribute to economic development through specific development projects. These projects may use intermediate technology – equipment and machinery suited to local conditions that local people can operate and maintain. C The aims of aid Development aid often comes from donor countries. Some countries are more generous than others, giving a higher proportion of their national wealth. The places to which aid is sent and the uses to which it is put are influenced by pressure groups and NGOs – non-governmental organizations – such as the aid agencies mentioned above. EXERCISES 49.1 Complete the sentences with appropriate forms of expressions from A and B opposite. 1. In Ethiopia in the mid-1980s, many people did not have enough to eat. This was one of the most severe _________ of recent times. 2. In 1999, Pakistan produced much less cotton than it normally does because of unusual climate conditions. This is an example of a damaging _________ _________. 49.2 Read the article relating to the ideas in B opposite. Then say if the statements below are true or false, identifying the phrase or sentence from the article that confirms your answer. (The first one has been done for you.) The Great Aid Debate   1. A number of things have made overseas aid a topical issue. True – several factors have brought the question of overseas aid to the fore. 2. The influence of pressure groups has produced results, especially in relation to debt relief.

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