ABSTRACT

Overseas Development Assistance (ODA), or 'aid' as it is commonly known, is the transfer of resources on terms which are more generous or 'softer' than loans obtainable on the world's capital markets. The specific importance of international financial assistance to help solve environmental problems first appeared in international forums in 1970. The final reason in favour of the international transfer of financial assistance is related to self-interest. This was argued forcefully by the 1969 Pearson Commission and by the first Brandt Commission. Project failure for ODA is often because of the misplaced focus of the recipient or the conditions attached to the ODA by the donor, or both. The demands for international financial assistance are increasing. Simultaneously, the willingness to provide such assistance is declining. In a nutshell, aid has a very important role to play in the movement towards a socially and environmentally sustainable society.