Norway to stop development aid for Thailand and Malaysia

Norwegian Foreign Minister Borge Brende. Photo: Eric Miller @ WikiCommons
Norwegian Foreign Minister Borge Brende. Photo: Eric Miller @ WikiCommons

As a part of a larger plan to cut the number of countries receiving Norwegian aid from 116 to 84, Norway is about to stop its development aid to Thailand and Malaysia.

According to the Norwegian newspaper Aftenposten, Thailand and Malaysia are among the 32 countries that are about to lose their Norwegian aid. The countries losing the support are mostly middle-income countries like Mexico, Mongolia and Argentina.

“By engaging in fewer countries we can make the aid more effective and in that way, reach more poor people,” Norwegian Foreign Minister Borge Brende tells Aftenposten.

As part of the initiative 12 countries will become special ‘focus-countries’, these countries will get extra attention. Myanmar is the only Southeast Asian country among the focus countries. Here Norway will emphasize on business development.

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