Oecd Journal On Development

How effective is aid at helping developing countries eradicate poverty? In March 2005, more than 100 countries endorsed the Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness and made a firm commitment to measure their success, or failure, in making aid more effective. This landmark report provides a snapshot of the state of affairs in 2005. For the first time, it assesses the effectiveness of aid, not only globally, but also for a range of donors. To measure its effectiveness, 34 developing countries and 55 donors participated in a ground-breaking survey, the results of which are presented here. Generally encouraging, the results show that developing countries and donors are working hard to make aid work better. However, more effort is needed to improve efficiency and effectiveness. For example, the survey finds that in 2005, donors organised 10 453 "missions" in 34 countries, adding up to an average of more than one mission per working day.