“Overseas aid” and “international development” are catch-all terms that cover a multitude of activities — and abuses. Building dams in India, planting treesin Burkina Faso, and rescuing street children in Brazil are images of development with which we can all identify. But what few people realize is that the terms “aid” and “development” often mask confusion, contradiction, and even downright deceit.

The updated version of 2002's best-selling No-Nonsense Guide to International Development explains what “development” actually is — and explores its political and economic roots in history. It shows what can happen in the name of development and argues for a more organic, social approach with those it seeks to serve as equal partners in the process.

MAGGIE BLACK has written books for Oxford University Press, UNICEF, and Oxfam. She has worked as a consultant for UNICEF, Anti-Slavery International, and WaterAid, among others, and has written for The Guardian, The Economist, and BBC World Service.

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“?I sincerely hope this No-Nonsense Guide to International Development reaches and informs a new section of thinking people across the world. Let as many of them as possible become supporters of and participants in the new politics of transformation.”

Medha Patkar, Narmada Valley People's Movement, India

“I strongly recommend you check out the No-Nonsense Guides’.”

Howard Zinn

“Find out how the world really works.”

George Monbiot