Why you should give a goat this Christmas

I think David Sanderson would see himself as a supporter of those who are poor in our world, but his article "Why you shouldn't give a goat this Christmas" adds confusion rather than support to their case.

The goat of course is the quintessential Christmas gift from an Australian NGO. Your donation goes to a project which includes goats and your friend receives a card letting then know of you very practical love for them and for someone far away.

Firstly, David points out some of the things that can go wrong with aid and assumes that the goat is a victim of these. There have been some bad mistakes over the years, But the NGO community puts a high value on learning from them. If the NGO behind the goat is a member of ACFID, they will be carefully examining the goat project to make sure that locals get good value out of it. The goat, for example, would be sourced as close as possible to its new owner. This will stimulate the local economy adding to the benefit the recipient, who will probably be required to return a kid to the program within two years, kept accountable and encouraged to see the wider picture of positive change for everyone.

Secondly, David conflates at least three types of aid: bilateral - from government to government, private aid - from NGO to NGO, and emergency aid, which is delivered response to a crisis.

It is bilateral aid which has the worst reputation for importing goods rather than stimulating local markets. Plenty of Chinese product is going into African infrastructure right now, and Australia has also insisted use of Australian goods and services. Governments like to stimulate their own economies. NGO's on the other hand really need to justify importing goods, and there are times when this is necessary, for example, if the technology is just not be available locally, or in an emergency, where some essential supplies may have been wiped out.

As David says cash handouts are increasingly being used as an efficient form of emergency aid. The goat, however will be part of a longer term community development project which is aiming to change the opportunities of a community.

There are good reasons to buy a goat this Christmas. If it is from an ACFID member NGO you can be assured that their operation meets a high standard. The goat money will get there. The first thing it will do is stimulate a struggling local economy with demand for the essentials of life, Then the goat will arrive at someone's humble door, communicating a message of solidarity. The wealthy people across the sea do care. Finally, two years down the track a family will have a new income stream which will help them send their kids to school and put food on the table where there was none. That's a lot more like Christmas than another gingerbread house for Aunty Flo!