“Racism manifests in the very structure of international aid; the sector still reflects the power relationships of colonialism.” So say the MPs of the UK parliament’s International Development Committee in a damning report on racism in the foreign aid sector, published yesterday.
How does racism show itself in international aid? The report continues: “It shows up in the terminology that aid actors use to describe the people they work with, and in fundraising campaigns which reinforce stereotypes of people in low- and middle-income countries as helpless and in need of saving.”
The committee might well have been thinking of ‘We The Helpers’, a campaign launched by a group of international non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in January.
