Louis Michel on development aid in times of recession

Louis Michel, EU Commissioner responsible for Development and Humanitarian Aid, fears in the weekly newspaper freitag that development aid will decrease in these times of global recession: "The economic recession has made people aware that our financial architecture is not only extremely fragile, but also hardly suited to our times. The current calls for a reform of the IMF are long overdue. Voting rights in the institution couldn't be more paradoxical. One example: Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands have more votes than Brazil, China and India. This has got to change. I am deeply convinced that the African Union must have its own adequate representation to further the interests of the continent. Although the economic crisis began in the richest countries, its ill effects are felt above all in the developing countries, not just because development aid is dwindling. Money transfers from migrant labourers in Western Europe to their families in Zimbabwe, Somalia, Angola or Ghana are often the only lifeline for millions of families. If these are interrupted it will be tantamount to a catastrophe. This is all the more reason to put thought into finding new sources of development aid."

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