The End of Development Aid as We Know It? Evolving Geopolitics, Changing World Order, and Declining Resources for Development

In 2024, development aid from members of the OECD Development Assistance Committee fell by 7.4 percent in real terms compared to 2023 – the first drop after five years of consecutive growth. In 2025, major donor countries announced further cuts in their aid budgets, partly to allow for increased military spending. Within shrinking aid budgets, increasing portions have been allocated as civilian aid to Ukraine and to cover the costs of hosting refugees from Ukraine in donor countries. In the US – accounting for nearly 30 percent of total global aid from the OECD – the Trump administration has suspended most aid and is withdrawing from major multilateral development organizations and initiatives. Global trade wars pose further challenges, constraining development prospects and making progress in meeting the UN Sustainable Development Goals by 2030, even less likely. This seminar will examine these evolving changes and discuss their implications for Norwegian development policies.

Program:

• 12:45: Coffee and snacks
• 13:00: Introduction by Espen Villanger, Director at CMI
• 13:05: Presentations and panel conversation with Jon Lomøy, Norwegian diplomat and former director of Norad, and Trine Østreng, International Advisor, Agenda. Remarks from Elling Tjønneland, Senior Researcher at CMI.
  Moderator: Hilde Selbervik, U4 Director
• 13:50: Q&A - Open discussion
• 14:45: About Elling Tjønneland’s work at CMI by Torunn Wimpelmann, Research Director

Welcome to this event marking Elling Tjønneland’s career at CMI on the occasion of his retirement. Free and open to all.