Britain are not happy with the massive aid giving to Nigeria and Afghanistan. Global
rankings show Nigeria and Afghanistan among the world’s most
corrupt countries. Despite
this, Britain gives £237million a year in aid to Nigeria and
£198million to Afghanistan, the latest figures show. The total aid
spending on the two countries is 35 per cent higher than when David
Cameron came to power in 2010.
Transparency
International, an international non-governmental organisation, ranks
war-torn Afghanistan as the third worst country in the world for
corruption, only better than North Korea and Somalia, while Nigeria is
32nd from bottom.
Two
years ago, a report from an aid watchdog found that UK aid fuels
corruption in Nigeria, with one scheme increasing the likelihood that
locals would have to pay backhanders to the police. The Independent
Commission For Aid Impact said the Department for International
Development (DfID) was not ‘up to the challenge’ of tackling corruption,
often because it was concerned about offending local politicians.
NIGERIA: CORRUPTION
Transparency International’s corruption perception index puts Nigeria at 136 out of 168 countries.
Corruption
is endemic in Nigeria, with estimates as high as 400billion US dollars
lost since it won independence from Britain in 1960.
A
2014 study by the Independent Commission For Aid Impact found: ‘Petty
corruption touches virtually every aspect of life and is accepted
throughout society as normal and necessary. We heard stories of parents
paying bribes to teachers to educate their children, workers paying
bribes to get jobs and receive their salaries, and pensioners paying
bribes to receive pensions.’
It
is believed that up to 20billion US dollars have gone missing from the
books of the state oil company, the Nigerian National Petroleum
Corporation.
Millions of dollars meant to be spent on vaccinations and on the fight against ebola have been illegally diverted.
AFGHANISTAN: CORRUPTION
Transparency International’s corruption index puts Afghanistan at 166 out of 168 countries.
The New York Times once wrote: ‘Corruption can no longer be described as a cancer on the system: it is the system.’
Corruption takes the form of bribes, nepotism, position buying and illegal land transfers.
Policemen
are accused of turning a blind eye to or even colluding with criminals
and insurgents in smuggling or kidnapping for ransom.
A
United Nations survey in 2012 found 50 per cent of Afghans were forced
to pay bribes for government services. Money was demanded by teachers,
customs officials, judges and prosecutors.
Corruption
in Afghanistan goes right the way to the top – with former president
Hamid Karzai himself apparently implicated. The Kabul Bank corruption
scandal in 2010 saw members of his family and others accused of spending
the bank’s money to fuel their lavish lifestyles.
AND HERE’S THEIR AID
In
2014, the UK gave £198million in aid to the country despite its record.
The DfID says none of the money goes to the government and is only
handed to local charities, with robust checks in place.
Millions
have been spent on trying to crack down on the opium and heroin trade,
but despite all the efforts the country’s poppy harvest is now at its
highest ever level.
Last
month it was reported that two schools in Helmand province, which were
refurbished using British aid money, are now being used as bases for the
Afghan army.
Billions
of dollars of aid have been siphoned off by political elites linked to
Mr Karzai. Experts believe that much may also have ended up in the hands
of the Taliban.
The
DfID said our funding supports basic services such as healthcare and
education, economic development, and anti-corruption measures.
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