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 fell in 2024 after years of growth
In 2024, ODA from DAC member countries declined for the first time in six years, falling by 7.1% in real terms compared to 2023. Total ODA amounted to USD 212.1 billion, representing 0.33% of member countries’ combined gross national income (GNI).
Only 4 countries exceeded the 0.7% target of ODA as a percentage of national wealth: Denmark (0.71%), Luxembourg (1.00%), Norway (1.02%) and Sweden (0.79%).
Aid to Ukraine fell in 2024
DAC member countries’ bilateral ODA to Ukraine fell by 16.7% in 2024 compared to 2023 and amounted to USD 15.5 billion, representing 7.4% of total net ODA (a decline from 8.0% in 2023). Contributions from EU Institutions outpaced those from DAC member countries combined.
