UN and Other Agencies are Short Billions for Aid in 2009

In July, the United Nations announced that it was short $4.8 billion for aid projects in the developing world due to the global recession. This announcement was accompanied with the news that in many developing nations, poverty and the demand for aid is continuing to rise. While nations continue to pledge aid at G20 and UN summits, the money never actually reaches the UN.

Other aid groups are concerned that their problems are just beginning, because the early recovery from the recession will still be accompanied by lower disposable incomes, and thus less donations. To deal with the crisis, some groups are having to change their aid models and/or lay off employees, exacerbating the unemployment in the developed world. In addition, for groups whose work is mainly based around the US dollar, but who fundraise in another currency, fluctuating exchange rates have contributed to their struggles to maintain aid. Staff and press teams from these NGOs have begun to speak out about the issues they face.