Afghanistan, Iraq Sucking Up Foreign Aid

http://www.embassymag.ca/html/index.php?display=story&full_path=/2006/june/21/aid/

Organization criticizes Canada for trying to open up the definition of development assistance to include money spent on the support of security personnel in countries like Afghanistan.

International donor countries are focusing their aid money on Afghanistan, Iraq and other nations they feel are of strategic importance rather than those deemed to be the poorest and neediest, a new report says.

In addition, the Reality of Aid Network's 2006 global report found that in countries like Iraq and Afghanistan, aid workers are being put at risk because they are being identified with military operations mixing combat and humanitarian missions.

"This confusion of roles can easily put both humanitarian workers and local populations in danger as they become identified with a military party to the conflict," the report states. snip

In addition, many countries are spending large amounts of money on efforts to train and bolster military and security personnel in Afghanistan and Iraq and trying to pass it off as development aid, the report says.