The Legacy in Troubled Times

The deep crisis which afflicted the developed countries in 2008 ushered in a new era with complex impacts on development cooperation. In 2015 the UN was able to celebrate the achievement of substantial progress in meeting the MDGs and to set up a new set of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), to be achieved by 2030. But the crisis resulted in tight budgets in several European countries and led to reductions in their aid flows as well as changing attitudes towards economic assistance. Developing country needs also changed with emerging powers needing less aid and fragile states receiving greater international attention. The combination led to a variety of new aid practices and forms of collaboration which affected aid effectiveness, some adversely. This chapter reviews international cooperation for development as well as the U4 aid programmes during the past decade in order to gauge the relevance of the U4 legacy to the continuing challenges of eradicating poverty and achieving sustainable development.