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‘What’s yours is mine’- New economic development or neocolonialism?
Hello, my name is Hugh Rose and along with Verity Loake, I will be one of your Economic and
Social II chairs for this year's GWC MUN conference. This will be my third and final time chairing at
the conference and am really looking forward to it. I hope you will enjoy the conference whether it is
your first time or you are a returning delegate. Either way, you will get so much more out of the
conference if you come along prepared to get involved and participate in the debates.
The topic I am going to discuss is 'What's yours is mine', neocolonialism or economic development?
This briefing paper will hopefully provide some background information on the issues and help you
make a start with your own research. Most importantly, you will have to find out how the issues
impact on the country you are representing and its position on the matter
Neocolonialism
Neocolonialism is when one country uses economic investment to influence the internal affairs of
another sovereign nation.Consequently, this country is subjected (to being) dictated economically by
another country. The investing country can effectively control the other country's economy, politics
or defence. Neocolonialism can also be caused by interference from non-governmental organisations
or NGOs, which ultimately changes the political and economic situation in the country.
The term was first used by French writer Jean-Paul Sartre in an article for the Modern Times but the
word came into use mostly after ex-Ghanaian president Kwame Nkrumah used it to describe the
situation of the African economies after the end of colonialism. The word qis often used to describe
the situation whereby former colonial power continue to apply existing and past economic
arrangements to their former colonies as a means of maintaining colonial control.
An example of neocolonialism often referred to is that of South Vietnam. Even after its independence
from France, it was still reliant on aid from the United States and France. American intervention
then led to the long lasting Vietnam War, in which South Vietnam was defeated as American
interest dwindled.
Foreign aid
Foreign aid is money given from one country to another, in most cases, from rich country or MEDC
(more economically developed country) to a poor country or LEDC (less economically developed
country). The United Nations already has regulations in place to ensure MEDCs give at least 0.7%
of their GDP to LEDCs. However, only a fraction of wealthy countries reach the target. The
Scandinavian countries of Sweden, Denmark and Norway, Luxembourg and the United Arab
Emirates have been the most consistent, with the United Kingdom being the first of the G7
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countries, meeting the target in 2011. This money is supposed to be used to kickstart business and
the country's economy and to benefit the citizens of the LEDC receiving the aid.
However, this has not always been the case. Foreign aid is given out to the governments of the
country and not to the citizens themselves. This can then leave the system open to abuse and
member states are often left wondering why LEDCs are so poor even with the amount of money
given to the in aid. Many countries froze foreign aid being given to Uganda with fears that there was
fraud. The President of Tanzania, Jakaya Kikwete said that his country had 'lost' 30% of its
government's budget, citing corruption as the reason. However in reality, he was talking about the
foreign aid his country had received.
Foreign Aid is also not always seen as humanitarian, but as an essential component of diplomacy.
The USA for example has frequently given vast amounts of money to aid the militaries of countries
such as Afghanistan and Israel. China also spends a lot on foreign investment, even investing in a
nuclear plant in the United Kingdom, one of the richest countries in the world. Both of these
example obviously show that foreign aid is not always given by countries to combat poverty in
LEDCs.
Many also argue that in fact foreign aid is damaging to LEDCs. Such countries may become over
reliant on foreign and to the detriment of building a sustainable economy for the future.
Neocolonialism and foreign aid
The main question that the debate is driving at is how can we prevent foreign aid being given out
that imposes one country's authority over another. Many would argue countries should stop giving
out foreign aid altogether as they feel it only makes autocratic regimes stronger and in reality
worsens the situation. Others however feel that microcredit though given in much smaller quantities,
is better as it is not given to governments, but rather the individuals themselves. Despite this, many
feel microcredit use is limited. Some countries also feel we need preventative measures put in place
to stop MEDC companies from taking over the economies in LEDCs.
Things to think about
Does your country give foreign aid or receive foreign aid? What are the effects for your country?
Does your country believe in giving foreign aid?
Does your country believe it actually achieves economic development?
What to do now
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Your task now is to email your position paper of around 50 words to me by ... explaining your
country's views on the topic. My email address is [email protected] . You must do this if you
are wishing to get an award at the conference. Good luck and I looking forward to seeing you at
the conference.
Useful links
http://www.aidtransparency.net/
http://www.globalpolicyjournal.com/blog/19/08/2014/new-neo-colonialism-africa
http://www.globalissues.org/article/35/foreign-aid-development-assistance
For Country Profiles and lots of other useful information:
http://www.nationsonline.org/oneworld/
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/country profiles/default.stm
For issues of current international debate:
http://www.newint.org/
http://www.idebate.org/
http://www.amnesty.org/
George Watson’s College MUN Conference 2016