The World Bank said mid-December that they raised a record $25.1 billion for developing countries. Why is this significant? First of all, The United States ceded its spot as the top contributor to Britain. This is caused in part by the slipping value of the dollar against European currencies, but it also points to our commitment to global development. We currently only pledge .19% net aid as a portion of our economy. More importantly, the large increases in both Britain and Germany’s pledges indicate that relations between the World Bank and Europe are strengthening.

Nancy Birdsall, president of the Center for Global Development, said, “The Europeans were looking for a sense of direction and some confidence in where the bank was going. This shows there is a renewed confidence.”

On another hopeful note, several countries that were once recipients of this money, such as Egypt and China, are now contributors.

Of course, as you know by now, there’s much more to global development than aid–other factors such as trade, investment, security, migration, and the environment are essential when considering our policy. Take a look at the Commitment to Global Development Index (CDI).

Read the New York Times article for more about this topic.