When Aid Goes Wrong

I’ve learned a lot about the world of international development since arriving in Suriname (and believe me, I STILL have a lot to learn). For one, I’ve learned that sometimes donor support can actually do more harm than good. Sometimes donor dollars are given with conditions and these conditions can actually cause even more problems than the ones they are supposed to be fixing. And sometimes donor dollars can go completely to waste because the donors didn’t stop to find out if that’s what the community actually needs. That’s the key – having input from those that are on the receiving end of the support. Sometimes I think donors come in thinking they know best and that may be true…if they were giving aid in their own country.

Allow me to share with you my favourite example from here in Suriname of donor support gone wrong.

On the way to the interior of Suriname you pass through a series of villages. These villages represent dozens of Maroon villages that were relocated when the first and only hydro dam in Suriname was created (by the way, the making of Suriname’s hydro dam was a MAJOR event in this country and they STILL talk about it and the impact of it like it just happened, when in fact the dam has been in operation since 1965). In amongst the rows and rows of shacks is a development of rather nice little homes. “Who lives there?” we asked. “Well, none of the villagers really want to live there so many of those homes are empty”. “But why, they’re nice homes? Why live in rusted out shacks when they can live in these beautiful modern homes?” Turns out the homes were built by the Chinese as part of an aid package for Suriname. And the problem with these nice homes: the villagers don’t like them because they are too hot to live in. They’d rather live in their style of homes because they are cooler. So, they choose their little shacks over nice manufactured homes.

It’s such a typical example of aid gone wrong. It seems such a simple thing to actually take the time to ask the local community what they need. But no, instead, donors come in believing they know what is best and provide aid accordingly.

We have all kinds of answers to fix things in developing countries. The problem is we’re not asking the right questions and sometimes, even worse, we’re not asking at all.


The homes built by the Chinese.


Vs. the homes they choose to live in.