When it comes to development aid, the Dutch have traditionally defied their parsimonious, penny-pinching stereotyped image. The Netherlands has always been seen to champion the cause of extending aid to nations in the developing world, donating more than any other country.

But now that’s going to change. On Thursday, the right-wing government – a minority cabinet of Conservatives (VVD) and Christian Democrats (CDA), with parliamentary support from the anti-Islam Freedom Party (PVV) - announced that development budget is going to be slashed. Christian Union MP Joel Voordewind paints a grim scenario:

“It’s early morning in Burkina Faso. A child comes to school, only to find there’s no class. Holland has stopped paying. The school is closed, the child’s schooldays are over.”

Deputy Foreign Minister and Development Cooperation Minister Ben Knapen’s scenario has a different ending:

“Maybe there is school that day – but the class is in a field, with four posts and a roof. We won’t abandon these countries, but things are going to change.”

Cups and balls trick

The minister had a tough afternoon in parliament as the opposition likened his proposal to cut aid to “gambling with the poorest in this world”. At one point, he was labelled a “betrayer”.

Mr Knapen drew up a list of 15 countries with which the Netherlands will sustain “a development relationship”. “Totally arbitrary”, “small shopkeeper’s mentality” and a “cups and balls trick game where the winner is a foregone conclusion: the business world”, were among the sceptical responses lashed against him.

The Dutch government wants to reduce the four-billion euro development aid budget by 20 percent. And the nature of the ‘aid’ has to change – from endless hand-outs to economic cooperation, with a focus on water and agriculture.

The lucky 15

Presently, 33 countries obtain aid from the Netherlands. Deputy Minister Knapen justified his crossing off 18 nations from the current list by saying that African countries like Burkina Faso and the Democratic Republic of Congo get generous donations from other sources.

The other 15 countries – including Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Uganda, the Palestinian territories, Rwanda and Sudan – will actually see an increase in the amount of aid they receive: fewer countries, but a more focused development policy.

For the free-market Conservative VVD – the largest of the coalition partners – the cuts don’t go far enough. The VVD wants to halve the budget; Geert Wilders’ populist far-right PVV wants to scrap development aid completely:

"Research shows that half of our donations are a complete waste of money – 60 billion euros in total. But my colleague MPs from the opposition pretend not to hear that and continue to drink their cups of redbush tea.”

Aid restored when crisis is over

Mr Knapen gave reassurances to appease the angry opposition voices:

“I’ve given very careful thought to those 18 countries which will receive more, much less or no development aid in the future. We'll not be abandoning the countries we’re stopping our development relationship with - like the Democratic Republic of Congo, Pakistan, Nicaragua and Bolivia - to an unknown destiny. We will do our utmost to find suitable partners to take our place.”

The decision to cut development aid is viewed as historic. But the minister made one promise: that if the Dutch economy improves, development aid will in turn increase: “We’re morally obliged to do that.”

 (jn/hs)