ODA is financial support from official providers to aid recipients (low- and middle-income countries) in areas such as health, sanitation, education, and infrastructure. It mainly consists of either grants or “soft” loans and it makes up over two thirds of external finance for least-developed countries.
Official development assistance (ODA)
Official development assistance (ODA) is government aid that promotes and specifically targets the economic development and welfare of developing countries. ODA has been the main source of financing for development aid since it was adopted by the OECD’s Development Assistance Committee (DAC) as the “gold standard” of foreign aid in 1969. The OECD is the only official source of reliable, comparable, and complete statistics on ODA.
Key messages
The DAC List of ODA-eligible recipients shows all countries and territories meeting the criteria to receive ODA. These consist of all low- and middle-income countries based on gross national income (GNI) per capita as published by the World Bank, with the exception of former G8 members, EU members, and countries with a firm date for entry into the EU. The list also includes all of the Least Developed Countries (LDCs) as defined by the United Nations (UN). It is reviewed every three years by the OECD’s DAC.
The DAC tracks and monitors ODA so that individual donor efforts are measured alongside the broader development finance landscape. The OECD ensures that providers adhere to the primary objective of ODA (the economic development and welfare of aid recipients) and inform them about where their ODA should go relative to existing needs.
Context
International aid rises again in 2023 in response to crises
In 2023, ODA from DAC member countries rose to an all-time high of USD 223.3 billion, representing a 1.6% increase from 2022 in real terms. Five countries met or exceeded the United Nations’ target of spending 0.7% of their national wealth on ODA.
Support to countries in need increased in 2023
Overall, developing countries received USD 258.4 billion in ODA and other concessional finance from all official providers, including providers outside of the DAC and outflows from multilateral organisations. Least developed countries (+4%) and sub-Saharan Africa (+3%) received more total aid and other concessional finance in 2023 than in 2022, driven in both cases by an increase in concessional flows from multilateral organisations. The multilateral system continues to be an important actor for countries in time of crises.
In 2023, Ukraine was the largest recipient of international aid ever for any single country in a single year
In 2023, Ukraine was the top recipient of ODA and other concessional finance for the second straight year, accounting for USD 38.9 billion, a 28.5% increase over the previous year. Among DAC countries, Ukraine received almost five times as much aid as the second-largest recipient, India.
