Developmental Aid Humour

[Addressing foreign aid for Africa, economist Dambisa Moyo says that] "there are many well-spoken, smart African leaders who should be on the global stage"; very largely, given that so far not many are, it's a case of who gets to do the talking, and increasingly, it is people like Bob Geldof and Bono, the most visible representatives of what she calls, in a thrillingly withering manner, "glamour aid". "[...] How would British people feel if tomorrow Michael Jackson started telling them how they should get out of the housing crisis? Or if Amy Winehouse started to give the US government advice about the credit crunch?

Moyo argues that many forms of aid hurt rather than help Africa; unfortunately I am too ignorant of developmental economics to have an opinion on this view, which seems to become increasingly popular. The quote is from this profile, here's an interview; the pointer's from Seth Roberts.