Britain can better help India through skills and knowledge transfer, rather than finance, according to the U.K. Independent Commission for Aid Impact.
U.K. aid to India continues to stir public debate. In response to some media reports, U.K. Secretary of State for International Development Andrew Mitchell earlier this week stressed anew that the government is “walking the last mile” with the emerging economy but “now is not the time to end” the aid program.
ICAI’s recent report upholds both governments’ pronouncements about the valuable contribution U.K. aid has made in India, particularly in improving access to education and health care in the state of Bihar.
It did recommend that the Department for International Development spend its money more on technical assistance, rather than give grants to Indian institutions and programs.
In Bihar, U.K.-funded technical assistance aims to build administrative and management capacity of the state’s health and related departments.
“It is easier to identify DFID’s direct impacts where it has provided technical assistance support than it is to attribute particular results from pooled funding,” ICAI says.
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