Foreign aid or international aid is when one country helps another country through some form of donation. Usually this refers to helping out a country that has a special need caused by poverty, underdevelopment, natural disasters, armed conflicts, etc.

The main receivers of foreign aid are developing nations (third world countries), and the main contributors are the industrialized countries.

The United States is the world's largest contributor of foreign aid in absolute terms ($15.7 billion, 2003), but the smallest among developed countries as a percentage of its GDP (0.14% in 2003). However, private foreign aid donations in the United States are on the order of $35 billion a year (2003), dwarfing the governmental aid of not only the US but many other countries.

External Links

• The US and Foreign Aid Assistance http://www.globalissues.org/TradeRelated/Debt/USAid.asp
• USAid.gov Overview of US Aid Spending http://www.usaid.gov/fani/overview/