Global Facilitation Network for Security Sector Reform (GFN-SSR)

Security, the War on Terror and Official Development Assistance

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What is the impact of the War of Terror (WOT) on development aid? This study, by the North-South Institute, examines the way in which the WOT has affected the orientation and efficacy of official development assistance (ODA). It argues that ODA has become a tool for the realisation of the goals of the WOT. Aid for political and security purposes has undermined support for development priorities.

The end of the Cold War resulted in an ODA architecture that was oriented towards the eradication of poverty. Now, the new security imperatives of the post-9/11 era are leading to the securitisation and politicisation of ODA. The priorities for the disbursement of ODA are secondary to the prerequisites of the WOT. The WOT has resulted in previously marginalised states, such as Pakistan, being brought back from isolation with significantly increased aid allocations.

Until 9/11, disbursements by the major donors depended on foreign economic, political and security interests. Colonial legacies, voting patterns in the United Nations and the economic policy of recipient countries played critical roles in the disbursement of ODA.

Since the launch of the WOT there have been significant changes:

• The total amount of ODA has increased although most of the increases have gone into security sectors rather than for development.
• There has been a geographical shift in aid disbursements and allocations. One-third of aid received from the ten countries whose aid increased most comes from a decrease in resources to the bottom ten countries.
• There is a broadening of the remit under which ODA can be applied. Funding is targeted at new sectors and new activities with sectors.
• Security-related considerations that influence ODA allocation include the presence of foreign terrorist groups, a shared border with a state sponsor of terrorism, contribution of troops to Iraq or membership in the “Coalition of the Willing”.
• States dependent on development assistance from countries like the US, UK and Canada are vulnerable to the political manipulation of aid for the purpose of garnering support for the military actions of the WOT.
• Other factors affected by security issues include debt cancellation, support for refugees in donor countries and the use of aid for military purposes.

The traditional notion that ODA is for the poor has been redefined. ODA now serves as a basis upon which international and national security is being established. It is important to understand that:

• development is a necessary underlying factor in the achievement of sustainable security, and security as an indispensable factor for sustainable development;
• criteria for the allocation of aid must include both development and security;
• there must be adequate resources to address the development factors (particularly poverty) that underlie some security realities; and
• it is important to sustain the primacy of development priorities to ODA - at present these are in danger of being overlooked.

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