Humphrey School News on-the-go

Brian Atwood reports on the changing attitudes regarding effective global development cooperation.

The Busan outcome document is a negotiated agreement. It represents hours of push and pull, with developing countries and civil society doing much of the pushing. A careful analysis will show where the compromises were made. But even with the give and take, it is quite a remarkable document. It does not turn night into day, as some might have hoped, but it does place all parties on equal footing--and on the same path. Heavily influenced by a recognition that the world has changed, it represents an effort to rationalize a global development architecture that badly needed fixing. It also embodies a well known axiom: that a "way" is indeed possible when there is a will. And while it is not perfect, I hope and believe that it will serve as an important milestone on the journey toward effective development cooperation.

Aid Sources
December 8, 2011