Why Bono and Angelina Are Spinning Their Wheels, or the Myth of Third-World Aid

Over and over again, you hear how we should help those poor, impoverished, fly-covered faces…worldwide. And over and over again, you hear cries of poor-mouthing and welshing on previously-pledged money, especially at the U.N. and World Bank.

Meanwhile, nary a dime actually gets to those who need it most.

The system of global aid collection and distribution is broken—almost as badly as our borders. Many churches and private organizations know this, and have long since set up their own relief agencies for more direct distribution of foodstuffs and other items. “If you want it done right, you have to do it yourself,” as my mother would say.

The problem with that is getting access to those who need to be served. Tribal wars, government officials and security forces on the take, and refugees either having to move around a lot (for their own protection), or being forced to leave because someone ordered the camps closed.

There always seems to be someone in charge with their hand out, willing to trade money, goods, or favors for direct refugee access. In the Congo alone, foreign aid rake-offs make up close to 40% of their GDP.

Certain celebrities seem to think the problem lies with getting our attention, then getting us to loosen our purse strings a little more. They couldn’t be more naïve.

Even while working both ends of the global need spectrum—Bono working from the top with the U.N. and governments, and Angelina working from the bottom with direct appeals to the masses—their efforts will result in little to no progress. The problem lies in the middle of the morass—the ones directly responsible for, who have direct exposure to, and are in charge of the security of those needy masses (whether assigned or won in battle). Foreign aid, in whatever form it comes, filters through a labyrinth of bureaucracy, and serves as bribe material to those in the middle—these “people” must be paid in whatever form the aid comes in—they want their share of the pie, too, even if it means the whole thing! Witness the activities of Kofi Annan’s boy Kojo, the former Philippine president Marcos and his wife, and even Saddam Hussein himself. In any case, very little aid actually gets to those who need it. This is the way the foreign aid game is played, and more aid isn’t going to make the situation any better—it just means more for those in the middle. Smart countries have figured this out, and have learned to give less or none at all. Unfortunately, starving the middleman means starving those at the bottom, too.

Helping starving Third World families means first getting them out of the fray they live in—they must be somewhere secure to be fed, clothed, and healed. This is easier said than done, because threats crop up in many forms every day. If “helping” was as simple as driving a truck into the middle of nowhere, and handing out money, food, or territory to the hungry, the homeless, or the power-starved, more of us would be on the ground over there. Unfortunately, protocols must be observed, risks weighed, and needs assessed/ranked, and all this takes time BEFORE we even get to amassing and airlifting goods out, hiring local security and translators, finding and loading vehicles (not to mention drivers) for delivery, setting up makeshift camps and buildings…do you see where I’m going here? More money is spent on assembling the infrastructure for aid than is actually spent giving aid to the ones who need it. What’s REALLY needed in war-torn areas is stability—in the form of secure, stable camps for refugees, a safe, secure, and reliable means for getting food, shelter, and medicine to them, and sufficient safety to maintain a steady staff to hand out goods, and administer medicine. Without the basics in place, nothing useful can follow, no matter how many babies Angelina has in Namibia, or how many chats Bono has with world leaders.

If you want to help, find out who already has an infrastructure on the ground (in your chosen area of donation interest) and back them. Whether it be UNICEF, Save the Children, Doctors Without Borders, or whomever, do your research before writing that check—make sure the organization actually does work in the area, and what kind. Otherwise, just sending checks to blanket organizations (like Red Cross or the United Way) go to fund more than you know: administrative overhead costs (i.e., salaries), subcontracting costs, navigating various layers of bureaucracy, and other things you never intended your money to pay for. Let the government contributions pay for the other stuff-the overhead, the security, the bribes and rake offs, etc.—you stick with the people on the ground handing out the food, building the shelters, or doctoring the sick.

Angelina and Bono should look into getting more bang for their charity and photo-op efforts, instead of relying on tabloid covers and CNN to do it for them. They should put their mouths where their money is; unless they really haven’t got a clue about the Third World Aid myth (this wouldn’t surprise me in the least!). If anyone has a way for individuals to ship bags of rice, grain, and packs of bottled water directly to, say, the N’butu or R’witi families (made-up names), please let us know. UPS won’t deliver to a constantly-shifting refugee camp that may come under occasional gunfire.

I’d gladly send pallets of multi-vitamins if I only knew how to get them there. Won’t you tell me, oh darling celebrities? America could send a fully-loaded fleet of Sam’s Club trucks, laden with food, water, and supplies to the nearest pick-up point—is this the attention you were hoping for? Where’s your follow-through, oh lime-lighted ones? What can we do in the midst of charity corruption scandals right here at home?

Just as I thought—another “mission accomplished” photo op, and more lube for the PR machine. You must keep that face in front of the cameras, poor darlings, lest you fade away into irrelevance. Press that flesh and pimp that image at the risk of your own careers.

One last thing: a few pointed remarks made on camera while holding babies is called “campaigning,” and convey no meaningful or lasting message whatsoever. They ring as hollow as your last script.