The impact of U.S. development assistance in Asia and the Near East

The authors of the present study reviewed the existing literature, including some 100 impact evaluations, in an attempt to answer this question. Their findings are presented in capsule reviews of the achievements and impacts of A.I.D. assistance in Egypt (11 projects/programs reviewed), India (9 projects/programs), Pakistan (8), as well as in Bangladesh (7), Indonesia (8), Jordan (7), Morocco (4), Nepal (6), the Philippines (5), Sri Lanka (4), Thailand (7), and Tunisia (5). Overall, the study found that, contrary to views put forth in some recent studies, Asia/Near East Bureau projects and programs have contributed to a variety of developmental effects. These include: (1) establishment of productive and durable institutions; (2) increase in small farmer incomes; (3) enhancement of private sector participation; (4) decrease in infant and child morbidity; and (5) decline in fertility rates. The areas of greatest impact seem to have been agriculture and population. Also contrary to much of current development literature: both projects and programs were found to contribute to policy reform; benefit/cost analyses, when present, indicated that benefits were consistently greater than the cost; no negative unplanned effects on women were found; and many projects specifically benefited the poor.