Free Money and Dependency Traps: Foreign Economic Aid to Sub-Saharan African Countries As a Model

Abstract:
 It cannot be said with certainty that all foreign economic aid has undesirable motives, despite it being an established practice in international relations since ancient times, although 1945 was an appropriate starting point for it. Depending on its types, forms, and goals, opinions differed about it. Among those who see that it opens the door to corruption and dependence, and those who see that it is effective as long as governance and administration are good, and others find that it is inevitable to accept it to fill the financing gap and as a moral commitment from rich countries. The controversy did not stop at the theoretical side, but extended to the practical side, which did not reach a consistent conclusion on the effectiveness of this aid in achieving sustainable development and reducing poverty.
 From this standpoint, the study aimed to identify the relationship between foreign economic aid and the extent of independence or dependency of the sub-Saharan African countries receiving it. By monitoring the theoretical and empirical debate and carrying out the necessary quantitative measurement through the use of four main indicators: Economic vulnerability index, financial dependency index, dependency burden index and food dependency index.
 The study concluded that the majority of sub-Saharan African countries depend on foreign economic aid, as its flows exceed those of private capital. This aid has failed to achieve sustainable economic growth and reduce poverty. They are often economically or politically motivated by donors. The majority of the countries of the region are trapped in economic dependency, as the relationship between economic aid and economic dependency is mostly positive, as evidenced by the high indicators of economic exposure, financial dependency, burden of dependency, and food dependency index.