Publication

There is a peculiar dearth of studies on the role of aid in India. To the extent that there are studies, the academic as well as the political debate focuses primarily on the role of the international financial institutions, the World Bank and the IMF – and in particular such controversial issues as conditionalities and sanctions. In contrast neither the aid from UN agencies nor the aid from bilateral donors is hardly ever subjected to analysis or debate. One reason for this obviously is that aid only plays a marginal role in the Indian economy. But that is not the same as saying that aid is unimportant or irrelevant for India’s development.