Media coverage for CGD

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 28, 2003

CONTACT:

Mike Boyer (FP) or Andrew Stober (CGD) 202-939-2345 202-416-0705 mboyer@ceip.org astober@cgdev.org

NEW RANKING: NETHERLANDS IS MOST DEVELOPMENT-FRIENDLY NATION
Only Germany Among G-7 in Top Half;
U.S. and Japan Finish Last in 20th and 21st Place

New Index Is First to Rank Rich Countries Efforts to Help the Worlds Poor

Washington, D.C. The Netherlands is the most development friendly of 21 rich nations ranked in a groundbreaking new index released today by the Center for Global Development and FOREIGN POLICY magazine. The unique CGD/FP Commitment to Development Index ranks 21 of the worlds richest countries based on their dedication to policies that benefit the 5 billion people living in poorer nations worldwide. The United States ranks first in the openness of its trade policy but in the overall index finishes at the bottom with Japan, in 20th and 21st place, respectively.

Moving beyond all-too-common assessments of foreign aid flows, the CGD/FP Commitment to Development Index also considers countries openness to developing-country exports and performance in peacekeeping, investment, migration, and environmental policies. The CGD/FP Commitment to Development Index rewards generous and selective aid giving, hospitable immigration policies, sizable contributions to peacekeeping operations, and hefty foreign direct investment. It also penalizes financial assistance to corrupt regimes and policies that harm shared environmental resources.

Commitment to Development Index Complete Rankings 1. Netherlands 2. Denmark 3. Portugal 4. New Zealand 5. Switzerland 6. Germany 6. Spain 8. Sweden 9. Austria 10. Norway 11. United Kingdom 12. Belgium 13. Greece 14. France 15. Italy 15. Ireland 17. Finland 18. Canada 19. Australia 20. United States 21. Japan

Three small nations top the index. The Netherlands, Denmark, and Portugal score high thanks to their development-friendly aid, investment, and environmental policies. New Zealand, which is not known for generous foreign aid giving, comes in fourth thanks to a strong showing in migration and peacekeeping policies. Norway, which is often regarded as a model global citizen, finishes 10th, mainly due to protectionist trade policies. The United States and Japan bring up the rear, despite being the worlds largest foreign aid contributors. The United States offers the worlds best access for developing-country exports but suffers poor marks in environmental policy and tied aid80 percent of U.S. foreign aid forces recipients to purchase American goods and services. Japans poor performance in the foreign aid and migration categories help consign it to last place. Germany, which ranked sixth, is the only member of the Group of Seven (G-7) industrialized nations to rank in the top half of the index.

Nancy Birdsall, president of the Center for Global Development, said, Developing countries have been ranked for years, on all kinds for measuresfrom their spending on girls education to their level of corruption. The index finally puts the spotlight on the rich worlds policies, and on the rich worlds responsibilities in a global economy.

Seven nationsCanada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United Statesaccount for two thirds of the worlds economic output, said FOREIGN POLICY Editor and Publisher Mois Na But our new index is the first to demonstrate that even as the forces of global integration give the G-7 nations immense economic power and the greatest potential to help the worlds poorest citizens, these countries arent necessarily committing themselves to policies that truly help the developing world. This is an important conclusion that I hope will spur debate on the policy decisions shaping our world todaya central part of FPs mission.

The index builds upon contributions from experts at the Center for Global Development, FOREIGN POLICY, the Institute for International Economics, the Brookings Institution, and the Migration Policy Institute and benefits from the generous support of the Rockefeller Foundation.

To read a complete version of the CGD/FP Commitment to Development Index, including all relevant charts and source data, and a look at how the index was calculated, visit foreignpolicy.com and www.cgdev.org.

ABOUT THE CENTER FOR GLOBAL DEVELOPMENT
The Center for Global Development is an independent, nonpartisan, nonprofit think tank dedicated to reducing global poverty and inequality through policy-oriented research and active engagement on development issues with the policy community and the public. www.cgdev.org

ABOUT FOREIGN POLICY
Founded in 1970, FOREIGN POLICY is the premier, award-winning magazine of global politics, economics, and ideas. Our readers include some of the most influential leaders in business, government, and other professional arenas in the United States and more than 90 other countries. In addition to our flagship English-language edition and Web site, foreignpolicy.com, FP is published in Arabic, Greek, Italian, Spanish (three editions), and Turkish. FP is published by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (www.ceip.org) in Washington, D.C. For syndication permission, contact Spencer Kehe, phone: 202-939-2241; e-mail: skehe@ceip.org.

CGD/FP Commitment to Development Index In Press

News release

Reuters: U.S., Japan have worst foreign aid policies
Inter Press Service: Netherlands, Denmark Most Committed to Poor
Financial Times: Japan, US ‘least helpful to poor nations’
Christian Science Monitor: Generous aid wins US few points in donor-nation rating
Yahoo! News: U.S., Japan Flunk Global Poverty-Reduction Test
OneWorld.net: U.S., Japan Flunk Global Poverty-Reduction Test
Kyodo News Service: Japan ranks last in survey on support for poverty reduction
News of Norway: Hilde F. Johnson receives international award

Op-ed

International Herald Tribune: When the rich talk aid, the poor don’t always get it