Product Description

"Overseas aid" and "international development" are catch-all terms that cover a multitude of activities-and abuses. This guide explains what "development" actually is-and explores its political and economic roots. It shows what can happen in the name of development and argues for a more organic, social approach with those it seeks to serve as equal partners in the process.

Maggie Black has written books for the Oxford University Press, UNICEF, and Oxfam. She has worked as a consultant for UNICEF, Anti-Slavery International, and WaterAid, among others, and has written for the Guardian, The Economist, and BBC World Service.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #77051 in Books
• Published on: 2007-10-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 144 pages

About the Author
Maggie Black has written numerous books including titles for OUP, UNICEF and OXFAM. She has worked as a consultant for a number of NGOs (UNICEF, Anti-Slavery International and WaterAid amonst others) and has written for the Guardian, Economist and BBC World Service.

Customer Reviews

For those who think they know what Int'l Dev. is
A great introductory guide for those who are intrigued by the subject. It offers no frills or fluff and stands as the bare-bones framework for understinding the International Development enterprise. If you thought you what "international development" is, this book is sure to set you straight. Concise, but informative, this book traces the history of the term to current perspectives on it. It is sure to clear up the most common misconception of the term "international development": which is the notion that there is an agreed definition of it - there isn't.

Essential reading for students of international development
Short, concise and witty. This book should be on all student essential reading lists, as well as required reading for all international development 'experts'.
Maggie Black has produced a basic guide to the current international development scene and tells us how we got to this chronic state of affairs. There is no panacea or quick fix, but she does make many suggestions on how we could go about undoing some of the harm perpetuated in the name of development.

Essential if depressing reading
Anyone who is involved in the "development business" should read this book. As one would expect from this author, it's well-informed, beautifully written, and entirely persuasive. It's also brief enough to read in one session, by the end of which one is devastated by the realization that, whoever "development" benefits, it certainly isn't the poor (or any other currently fashionable "target population"). I wish that I had had the skill, at some point during my 35 years trying to help people in developing countries, to marshall these arguments and try to convince the remote decision-makers that process and buzz-words only take one so far - eventually one has to provide poor people with what they themselves need, want and value. Unfortunately, it seems unlikely that the international bureacracy will ever read this book or take its lessons to heart - but they should!