The Role of Economic Cooperation in Achieving Sustainability

Abstract

Overcoming underdevelopment and achieving sustainability have been some of the most challenging tasks for the international community. Even though different initiatives have been promoted by international organizations, developed and developing countries, among other actors, there are still gaps to close. In this context, foreign aid and Official Development Assistance have been some of the principal economic tools used by the international community to promoted development. However, the  global development agenda, traditionally promoted by the United Nations, and the economic cooperation agenda, supported generally by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, have not always been completely synchronized. Additionally, the re emergence of South-South Cooperation, the appearance of new emerging donors from the Global South, and the increasing role of the private sector in the development landscape have created new opportunities and threats to achieve sustainable development. Given this reality, this paper aims to answer the following question: What has been the role of economic cooperation, especially foreign aid and ODA, in achieving sustainability? To answer this question, the paper provides a historical overview of the conception of development and the debates around economic cooperation as one of the tools to achieve it, as well as a review on the actors involved in economic cooperation for development and the channels of disbursement.  In the final section, current challenges and conclusions are presented.