At the end of November, 2,000 representatives of governments, international organisations and NGOs convened in Busan as the fourth High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness. Just before the meeting we proposed four criteria by which to judge its outcome as far as conflict-affected and fragile countries are concerned.

We’ll start with a close-up of a woman on her knees. She seems to be scrubbing some tiles. We track back and see that in fact she’s scrubbing the tyre tracks off a forecourt.

Today, the Fourth High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness has opened in Busan, Korea. The HLF4 is an opportunity for the global development community to come together and showcase the results that our partner countries have been producing, and to shape…

The wording of the Outcomes Document from the Fourth High Level Forum on Aid is largely agreed, and reflects much of the new thinking on aid: statebuilding and peacebuilding; human security; transparency and results.

As the High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness, to take place in Busan approaches, it is difficult to ignore that the global context has shaped the world of aid into a new ball game.

Recently released OECD DAC data from the Paris Declaration Survey shows improvements in the ways the international community and partner countries deliver Official Development Assistance (ODA), but this progress has been highly variable.