In this article, we discuss the 25 Countries That Gave the Most Foreign Aid in 2023. If you want to skip our detailed discussion of the topic, you can skip it and go directly to 5 Countries That Gave the Most Foreign Aid in 2023.
Governments of developed and established countries help other countries in need through foreign aid. Mostly, this is to form alliances and develop friendships as countries. In the year 2022, as per the latest data available from the OECD database, the member countries of the Development Assistance Committee (DAC) gave a total foreign aid of $211 billion to developing countries and those in need of urgent humanitarian aid.
Compared to 2021, the volume of foreign aid had increased by 17% in 2022. Note that volume does not equate to provision of capital. That’s because foreign aid comes in various forms, including gifts, grants, loans, food supplies, services, medical assistance, training services, peacebuilding, infrastructure building, healthcare, or humanitarian assistance, by one or multilateral countries or international institutions. Moreover, according to the rules set by OECD’s DAC, the first-year costs, such as accommodation, food, health, and education, spent on asylum seekers or refugees by the host country can also be considered official development assistance (ODA).
Foreign aid can also be fiscal and military, which is considered one of the significant sources of foreign exchange. While it may seem odd for a country to aid another country with military services, it primarily demonstrates goodwill. One of the most common reasons why countries give out foreign aid is to help developing countries fight poverty, and that clause comes under the Official Development Assistance (ODA) program. The main source of ODA comes from bilateral grants from one country to another, including loans channeled by International and non-governmental organizations.
Sometimes, countries offer foreign aid to another country to improve their own security. For instance, when a hostile government tries to take over politically friendly countries or goes to war with them, helping the countries with military and financial assistance improves the donor’s security. A good example of this was seen during the Russia-Ukraine war. According to the Media Govt report, the United States has sent a total of $44.2 billion worth of military aid to Ukraine to help the country win the Russia-Ukraine war. Another common reason behind giving foreign aid is to accomplish a political aim, such as getting diplomatic recognition in a region.
Whatever the purpose behind it may be, almost every country either provides or receives foreign aid. However, generosity is not compared by how much total volume of aid a country gives. Rather, it’s compared by how much foreign aid a country gives per capita (See: 25 Countries that Give the Most Foreign Aid Per Capita), or the ODA/GNI scale, which measures what percent of Gross National Income a country spends on aid. In 1970, the United Nations set the target of ODA/GNI at 0.7% for every developed country and has been re-endorsing it since. In the list below, we’ll discuss countries that gave the most foreign aid in 2023 as measured by the ODA/GNI scale. The primary goal of the 0.7% ODA/GNI target is to help developing countries achieve economic stability.
Interestingly, governments and international organizations are not the only entities to help another country. Some companies also engage in helping countries in dire need. Leading companies like American Airlines (NASDAQ: AAL), Walmart Inc (NYSE: WMT), and Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ: GOOG) generously give back to society in charities that go worldwide.
American Airlines (NASDAQ: AAL) has adopted a Global Giving Strategy, where they focus on spreading breast cancer awareness, disaster relief, and donating to NGOs that work in humanitarian causes. Similarly, Walmart Inc (NYSE: WMT) globally donates 1.3 billion dollars to NGOs dedicated to anti-hunger programs. From food, refrigerated trucks, and other logistics, Walmart Inc (NYSE: WMT) donates to make this world a better place.
Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ: GOOG) does similar philanthropic work, donating generously to humanitarian aid reliefs. Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ: GOOG) also assists underserved communities to participate in college programs in AI and Robotics. Other than these three, there are many other companies that engage in charity and social activities. If you’d like to have a detailed list of those companies, click here.
Coming back to foreign aid, 2024 may be a pivotal year in this regard as DAC countries decide between prioritizing the funding of the SDGs in the wake of climate emergencies or funding international development in the wake of increasing economic deceleration, renewed political instability, and humanitarian conflicts.
Below is a list of countries that gave the most foreign aid in 2023.
25 Countries That Gave the Most Foreign Aid in 2023
Our Methodology
For our list of countries that gave the most foreign aid in 2023, we’ve utilized data from the ODI/GNI scale, as listed in the Principled Aid Index of 2023. The index scored countries based on their aid towards development gaps, global cooperation, and public-spiritedness, with the total score being 30. A high score indicates a high amount of foreign aid in these sectors, while a low score indicates the opposite.
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25 Countries That Gave the Most Foreign Aid in 2023
25. Portugal
According to the ODI’s Index, Portugal scored 12.4 out of 30 for principal aid, which is relatively low compared to other countries on our list. The country scored 4.77 in development gaps, 3.55 in global cooperation, and 4.08 in public spiritedness.
Portugal has also been an important supporter since the beginning of the Global Fund, an international financing organization working specifically to fight epidemics. Moreover, it has announced to contribute around €1.5 million between 2023-2025 to the Global Fund, demonstrating its dedication and interest towards the betterment of Global Health.
24. Czech Republic
According to the Czech Republic’s Development Cooperation Strategy Agenda 2018-2030, development programs have been concluded for only six countries. For these programs, three countries are chosen from the OECD’s list of least developed countries: Ethiopia, Zambia, and Cambodia, while the other three are selected middle-income countries including Bosnia, Moldova, and Georgia. The Czech Republic also developed five-year bilateral cooperative programs for these six countries, which ended in 2023. The next round of country programming is being reviewed.
Overall, the Czech Republic scored 13.6 out of 30 in Principle Aid according to ODI’s Index for 2023. It scored 4.95 for the development gaps, 3.92 for the global cooperation, and 4.73 for the public-spiritedness.
23. Hungary
Hungary has been a member of the DAC (Development Assistance Committee) since only 2016 but has shown great capacity to improve according to established DAC standards. The Principled Aid Index shows a total score of 15.08 out of 30 for Hungary, with 4.52 scores for development gaps, 4.53 for global cooperation, and 6.03 for public spiritedness. These are relatively good scores, meaning Hungary has been a prominent donor of financial aid in 2023.
The first OECD-DAC peer review for Hungary 2023 has praised the impressive ODA growth of the country and its international efforts for the management of sustainable water provision.
22. New Zealand
New Zealand’s strong political commitment and its focus on indigenous values in policy-making and partnerships compelled the first OECD-DAC peer review 2023 to praise it as well. As of 2024, New Zealand has provided around 70 million USD in military and humanitarian aid to Ukraine so far.
According to the Principled Aid Index, New Zealand had a total score of 17.11 out of 30 in 2023, out of which 2.73 was for the development gaps, 6.83 for global cooperation, and 7.55 for public spiritedness. Overall, it’s a good score, positioning New Zealand 22 in the top 25 countries that gave the most foreign aid last year.
21. Australia
The foreign aid budget of Australia was around 4.549 billion USD in the years 2022-2023. According to the ODA (Official Development Assistance) 2023-2024 budget summary, Australia will provide another 25 million USD for refugees, 11 million USD for an emergency response fund, and 20 million USD for a relief and works agency for Palestine refugees in the Near East.
For 2023, the Principled Aid Index shows that Australia scored 17.79 out of 30 overall. The disaggregated data further shows that it had the least contribution to development gaps with a score of 4.09 for development gaps, a moderate contribution for global cooperation with a score of 5.53, and the highest contribution towards public spiritedness, with a score of 8.17.
20. Austria
Austria has finalized and started the implementation of its development policy (2022-2024) focusing extensively on combating poverty, peacekeeping and human security, and protecting natural resources. OECD-DAC peer review 2023 has welcomed Austria’s government’s three-year program as a coordinated approach.
According to the Principled Aid Index Austria scored 17.88 out of 30, which is only slightly higher than New Zealand. Austria had a score of 5.17 under the development gaps domain, and 5.71 for public spiritedness. Out of all three domains, its contributions were mostly towards global cooperation in the year 2023, with a score of 7 on the Principled Aid Index.
19. Spain
On number nineteen comes Spain, a country that has shown a strong commitment to development despite fluctuations in foreign aid allocation over the years. According to the General State Budget for 2023, the ODA of Spain reached 4.6 billion USD last year. The Principled Aid Index shows that Spain has scored a total of 17.96 out of 30 for its 2023 foreign aid efforts, out of which development gaps and global cooperation had a score of 5.61 and 5.76 respectively, and public-spiritedness had a score of 6.58. In the first quarter of 2023, Spain approved a Law on Co-operation for Sustainable Development and Global Solidarity, which means Spain has committed to the allocation of 0.7% of its GNI to Official Development Assistance by 2030.
18. France
In 2023, France’s total ODA funding reached around 19 billion USD which is estimated to be 0.55% of its GNI. According to the Principled Aid Index, France scored 18.06 out of 30 with a score of 3.43 for the development gaps, 7.46 for global cooperation, and 7.17 for public spiritedness.
17. Japan
In November 2023, the Japanese Government announced the reopening of the JICA Ukraine office which is responsible for providing over 1.1 billion USD funds to Ukraine. The government also announced 10 million USD to support children’s education in Afghanistan in July 2023, and another 10 million USD to empower Afghan women in October 2023.
Japan donated significantly more foreign aid than France in 2023, with a score of 18.96 out of 30 on the Principled Aid Index. It contributed the most towards global cooperation, moderately towards public spiritedness, and the least towards development gaps, with scores of 7.14, 6.62, and 5.19 respectively. For 2024, Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has confirmed the ODA budget allocation to be US$2.2 billion.
16. Italy
Italy 2021-23’s programming and policy planning for international development cooperation focused on 20 countries, out of which 10 were the least developed ones (LDCs). According to the UNHCR donor report, Italy’s total aid contribution in 2023 was around 33.1 million USD.
On ODI’s Principled Aid Index, Italy has a score of 19.79, with disaggregated scores of 6.15 for the development gaps, 7.45 for global cooperation, and 6.18 for public spiritedness. Overall, this is a significant donation in all domains.
15. Finland
Finland was among countries that gave the most aid in 2023. The Humanitarian Aid for Finland in 2023 totaled around 112.6 million EUROS out of which 31% was allocated for humanitarian agencies, 58% for country and region-specific operations, and 11% for civil society organizations. The Principled Aid Index shows that Japan has scored 19.99 out of 30 on the ODI scale while scoring 6.11 for development gaps, 8.46 for global cooperation, and 5.42 for public spiritedness.
14. Germany
Ranked 14, Germany is known for being one of the largest DAC members in terms of ODA volumes. However, due to its current economic situation, Germany has cut down its budget for foreign aid in 2024 by almost €2 billion. According to the Principled Aid Index, Germany scored 20.31 out of 30 on the ODI scale, with a score of 4.41 for the development gaps, 8.42 for global cooperation, and 7.49 for public spiritedness.
13. Switzerland
Switzerland gave just slightly more aid than Germany in 2023, which is reflected in its score of 20.80 on the Principled Aid Index. With a score of 8, 7.75, and 5.04 respectively, it contributed the most towards global cooperation, the least towards development gaps, and moderately towards public spiritedness. For the period of 2025-28, Switzerland has allocated a budget of around $12.75 billion for international cooperation activities, with the focus being primarily on Ukraine and climate change.
12. Belgium
In 2022, Belgium provided an ODA of $2.7 billion, which makes it the 17th largest DAC donor by volume. Between 2023 and 2024, Belgium’s aid estimates stand at US$3.4 billion and US$3.3 billion respectively. At a UNHRC conference, Belgium announced around 32.5 million USD of funding to the organization for the period of 2021-23, which translated to around 10.84 million USD yearly.
According to the Principled Aid Index, Belgium scored 20.96 out of 30 for its aid in 2023, with a score of 6.23 for the development gaps, 6.56 for global cooperation, and 8.17 for public spiritedness.
11. Korea
Ranked number eleven on the aid index, Korea’s 2023 total ODA budget was confirmed to be 3.8 billion USD — the largest ever in the past decade. The Principled Aid index shows Korea’s total score to be 21.01, with 6.19 for the development gaps, 7.14 for global cooperation, and 7.68 for public spiritedness.
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Disclosure: None. 25 Countries that Gave the Most Foreign Aid in 2023 is originally published on Insider Monkey.