Report Finds U.S. Aid Not Regularly Impartial

The Washington Post [1] reports that according to a survey by a Madrid based nonprofit group that monitors donors' performance, the United States does a poor job at promoting humanitarian aid as independent and neutral. The Development Assistance Research Associates (DARA) Humanitarian Response Index 2008 measures how effectively the world's largest donors deliver aid. The U.S. ranked 15th in overall [2] effectiveness. "DARA's findings reflect what it called the United States' use of humanitarian assistance to achieve military or political goals in eight crisis zones the group studied, including Afghanistan, Colombia and the Palestinian territories."

The U.S. has criticized DARA's index for not appreciating the importance of the military's role in relief work. However, such a presence results in the politicization of aid, and unclear distinctions between the U.S. government and aid organizations.

"The DARA findings echo concerns by aid workers that U.S. strategy subordinates humanitarian considerations to military objectives. During the past decade, the Pentagon's share of the U.S. overseas development-assistance budget has grown from 3.5 percent to 18 percent, said George Rupp, president of the International Rescue Committee."For more on the Humanitarian Response Index 2008, click here [3].