The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation revealed that the total value of foreign aid to the state exceeded 28.5 billion dirhams and targeted 42 countries during the past year, explaining that the total value of development assistance provided by the state over the five years amounted to 108 billion and 72 million dirhams.

The Ministry affirmed that the value of developmental, humanitarian and charitable assistance provided by the UAE to the least developed countries represented more than half of the total foreign aid, demonstrating the country's firm commitment to eradicating poverty in the world.

In detail, the ministry announced that the total value of the foreign aid to the country, which targeted 42 countries around the world, exceeded 28.5 billion dirhams (7.79 billion US dollars) during the past year, stressing the state’s commitment to international standards related to the announcement of foreign aid data for donor countries.

The Ministry indicated - in its annual report issued yesterday, on the volume of foreign aid to the UAE - to the success of the country for the sixth year in a row in exceeding the value of its aid by 0.7% of the gross national product, which was approved by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, pointing out that The proportion of Emirati aid to the gross national product, amounted to about 0.93%, which makes the UAE among the largest donors in the world.

The report stated that, according to the data of the Development Assistance Committee of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, the year 2018 is marked for the first time in the calculation of official development assistance, using the new methodology developed by the Development Assistance Committee of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, agreed by the members of the Committee in 2014 .

The report said: The total value of foreign aid provided by the UAE during the years from 2016 to 2018, for all categories of aid (humanitarian, development and charitable), reached 69.59 billion dirhams ($ 18.95 billion), with an average of 23.20 billion dirhams ($ 6.32 billion) for the three-year period, and thus The foreign aid provided by the UAE in 2018 will have increased by 53% over the year 2017, to record the second highest year in the past five years in the calculation of official development assistance only.

He added: The total value of UAE aid payments over three years amounted to 46.25 billion dirhams ($ 12.59 billion), however the total value of official development assistance provided by the UAE during 2018 is 12% lower than the previous year, partly due to the methodology of calculating The new official development assistance applied starting in 2018, and despite this the general trend of measuring ODA to the country's gross national income during the same period is much higher than the international target, which was set at 0.7%, reaching 0.93%.

The report pointed out that, back to the first year in which the UAE reached this global target (in 2013), the average state’s ODA ratio to gross national income over the past six years proves the UAE’s firm commitment to eradicating poverty in The world and achieving the sustainable development plan, with an average of 1.16% of official development assistance to gross national income, during the years 2013 to 2018.

Regarding the total aid paid to the least developed countries and their percentage of the country's gross national income, the report stated that, according to the data of the Development Assistance Committee of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, the value of official development assistance provided in 2018 from official donors decreased by 2.7% from that provided In 2017, the actual value of bilateral ODA to LDCs decreased by 3% from 2017.

He explained that, since ODA constituted more than two thirds of the external financing directed to the LDCs, the observed decrease in the value of ODA provided to the LDCs was a cause for concern.

The report stated that, in recognition of the crises and tribulations of the most vulnerable groups, and the urgent urgent need to help the most needy groups, the share of foreign aid provided by the state for the benefit of the least developed countries continues to increase annually.

The peak of its rise recorded a significant difference in 2018, as the value of developmental, humanitarian and charitable assistance provided by the UAE to the least developed countries represented more than half of the total UAE foreign aid, with a value amounting to 14.72 billion dirhams ($ 4.01 billion), and the value of foreign aid provided From the UAE for the benefit of the least developed countries over the past five years, to 32.18 billion dirhams (8.76 billion dollars).

In terms of official development assistance, it amounted to 10.19 billion dirhams ($ 2.78 billion). According to the report, it represented 73% of the total aid granted in 2018, and the equivalent of 0.66% of the value of official development assistance to gross national income, provided in 2018, in addition to the increase in the value of official development assistance directed to the least developed countries during 2018, which is equivalent to More than twice the UAE payments to the same category in 2017, or an increase of 158%.

The report said: Since 2015, when the UAE achieved the first global target, by directing 0.15% to 0.20% of the ratio of official development assistance to the gross national income for the benefit of the least developed countries, the total value of the official development assistance payments provided by the UAE in the interest of these The category of countries is 23.17 billion dirhams ($ 6.31 billion), while the value of ODA commitments announced by the UAE in 2018 to the benefit of the least developed countries amounted to 1.36 billion dirhams ($ 371.3 million), which is more than a third of the total commitments of aid Official Water announced by the UAE during the same year.

3 aid categories

The report of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation spoke about the categories of aid, indicating that foreign aid is divided into three categories: development, humanitarian, and charitable.

He added that development aid refers to programs that aim to improve economic or social welfare, while humanitarian assistance refers to activities that contribute to saving lives, including responding to emergencies and relief operations, while charitable assistance includes projects of a religious or cultural nature.

The report stated that, in continuation of its methodology in providing foreign aid, development aid, or programs that contribute to improving economic and social welfare, provided by the UAE, represented up to 80% of the total foreign aid provided during 2018, while humanitarian aid represented, i.e. efforts made In order to save lives, including responding to emergencies and relief operations, about 18% of its total foreign aid, which is the highest rate for more than five years, while the value of payments directed to projects of a religious or cultural nature, referred to in This The report aid charity, to 615.7 million dirhams ($ 167.6 million), representing the remainder of the total foreign aid during the ratio in 2018.

He said: Over the past five years, the total value of development assistance provided by the Emirates exceeded more than 100 billion dirhams, specifically 108.72 billion dirhams ($ 29.60 billion). Likewise, its humanitarian aid provided during the same period, from 2014 to 2018, reached a great value It reached 13.08 billion dirhams ($ 3.56 billion).

The report added: The values ​​of official development assistance provided by the UAE are in line with this trend, as it reached 86% during the years 2014 to 2018, directed to the interest of implementing a number of global development projects. However, despite the fact that development aid continued to receive the lion's share, during 2018, the proportion of ODA humanitarian exceeded 30% of the total aid.