Foreign aid is the provision of money, goods, or services from one country to another, usually to support the people in a lower-income country. It can be used to build public infrastructure, improve health or education, increase economic growth, reduce conflict, support institutions, or recover from disasters or crises.

Supporters of aid highlight successful organizations and programs, such as PEPFAR, which has saved millions of lives from HIV and AIDS; GAVI, which has vaccinated hundreds of millions of children against diseases; USAID and private foundations, which supported the Green Revolution to increase crop yields; and the Carter Center, which has led the near-eradication of guinea worm disease.¹

But foreign aid projects can fail and, in the worst cases, cause harm. Foreign aid can disrupt local economies and political systems and make governments more responsive to foreign powers than their own citizens.²

Critics of foreign aid point to failures like the WHO’s Global Malaria Eradication Program in the 1950s and ’60s, or India’s aid-supported family planning and sterilization program in the 1970s.

Foreign aid comes in many forms. Governments provide most assistance, but civil society organizations and international organizations, such as the World Bank, also play an influential role. Aid is often directed towards the poorest countries, but other countries that are not among the poorest also receive significant amounts. Some aid supports government operations generally, but most aid is focused on specific sectors.

On this topic page, you can explore data on who gives and receives foreign aid, the different types of assistance, and a few examples of when it has been successful.