New Masters examines how to get more out of aid money

We live in a world where the plight of others often ends up on our doorstep. Sometimes this happens directly, as with the refugees and migrants that end up all across Europe, or with our neighbour’s son, who goes for a UN peacekeeping mission to a war zone in some far-flung country.

Malta has not yet issued a breakdown of how its aid money is spent- Anna Khakee

Sometimes, it is more indirect, through heart-rending news reports about humanitarian emergencies in Libya, Syria, Haiti and Somalia, for example.

Malta has become a more important player when it comes to humanitarian and development assistance in recent years, both directly through aid sent to places like Libya, and through the EU and its various institutions. Through the EU, Malta is, in fact, an integral part of the largest multilateral aid giving institution in the world.

In a recent review of Malta’s humanitarian and development aid to countries in need, the island got a mix of very high scores and “could do quite a bit better”.

In terms of money spent, Malta is doing comparatively well. It is among those EU countries that have increased aid levels in recent years. In fact, according to Aid Watch/Concord, the NGO consortium responsible for the review, among those countries that are relative newcomers to the EU, Malta tops the list with a 44 per cent increase in aid in2011 (not least because of the Libyan emergency).

At the same time, the review reveals that, unlike its EU peers, Malta has not yet issued a comprehensive breakdown of how that aid money is spent, though the government is stressing that it is committed to do so.

Helping those in dire need is a natural human impulse for many, as shown after the Libyan crisis, when Malta was active on many fronts in the humanitarian response. At the same time, in every calamity and in every situation when aid money is spent, there are cries for better targeting of those in real need (making sure that the food gets to children and mothers rather than fighters), higher effectiveness and less corruption and waste.

It is issues such as these which lie at the heart of the new Master of Arts in Humanitarian Action launched by the University, and which will be offered for the first time this October. The MA programme, for which applications are now being accepted, can be followed either full-time or part-time – the part-time option is ideal for people who are working.

The programme looks at hu­man­itarian and development action from both a practical and an analytical perspective.

It is multi-disciplinary, looking at issues such as media and humanitarian action, me­di­cal and public health aspects of humanitarian action, security and ethical issues, and international law.

The teaching staff is a mix of international, national and in-house experts.

With the degree, students should be able to critically analyse humanitarian and development action (what works and what doesn’t), and work effec­tively in the humanitarian and development field around the world.

For more information on the programme visit www.um.edu.mt/arts/int-relations/mahumanitarianaction and www.um.edu.mt/arts/overview/PMAHMAFET12-2012-3-O.

To apply visit www.um.edu.mt/apply.

Dr Khakee is a senior lecturer at the University’s Department of International Relations.