Official development assistance (ODA) received

What does this indicator tell us?

Official development assistance received (net disbursements as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product (GDP)) is a measure of the flow of aid, private capital and debt in comparison with the value of goods and services produced within the country.

How is it defined?

This indicator is the ODA received as a percentage of the GNI. Net ODA consists of grants or loans to countries or territories from the official sector, with the main objective of promoting economic development and welfare, at concessional financial terms. GNI is the sum of value added by all resident producers plus any product taxes (minus subsidies) not included in the valuation of output, plus net receipts of primary income (compensation of employees and property income) from abroad.

What are the consequences and implications?

When ODA makes up a large proportion of the GNI, a country is highly aid dependent, with the risk that it relies on unpredictable aid and donor-driven aid programmes. This can affect the resources allocated to nutrition, which are often not a donor priority in the sector-wide aid strategies promoted by the Paris Declaration (2005).

Source of data

World Bank. DataBank. World development indicators (http://databank.worldbank.org/data/home.aspx).

Further reading

Paris Declaration at a glance. (Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness: ownership, harmonization, alignment, results and mutual accountability.) World Bank; 2005 (http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTDIASPORA/General/21512731/ParisDeclaration.pdf).