capitalist wages

A Government-owned business set up to help alleviate poverty in the developing world paid its chief executive almost £1 million last year, a report has revealed. CDC Group's Richard Laing received £970,000 , more than double a threshold set by its owner, the Department for International Development (DFID). CDC is a fund management company which invests in private businesses in emerging markets, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa and south Asian , in support of DFID's goal of nurturing the growth of the private sector economy in developing countries.
The National Audit Office found that there was "no systematic evidence on the extent to which CDC investment adds to overall investment in poor countries". DFID was "not well-equipped to consider the benefits of its investment" compared to other aid approaches. It also noted that CDC this year had £1.4 billion deposited in cash in the UK, compared to £1.2 billion invested in businesses overseas.
The chairman of the House of Commons Public Accounts Committee, Edward Leigh, said: "It is ridiculous that the chief executive of a Government-owned body aimed at reducing poverty can earn £970,000 in a single year."

Voluntourism

Young people would be better off travelling the world than taking part in "spurious" overseas gap-year aid projects said Voluntary Service Overseas (VSO).

" Young people want to make a difference but they would be better off travelling and experiencing different cultures, rather than wasting time on projects that have no impact and can leave a big hole in their wallet." - Judith Brodie , Director of VSO


"voluntourism" often cost students thousands of pounds and did nothing to help developing countries. The gap-year industry catered for the needs of participants rather than those they claimed to help . VSO said projects offered to students taking a year off were often badly planned and could have a negative impact on participants and the communities they worked with.

"...we are increasingly concerned about the number of badly planned and supported schemes that are spurious - ultimately benefiting no one apart from the travel companies that organise them," said Judith Brodie.

In June, VSO warned "consumer-driven volunteer tourism" was jeopardising the charity's development work in countries most in need. People were increasingly approaching the organisation about volunteering "as if it was a holiday" .
And last year VSO said gap-year programmes risked becoming "outdated and colonial" by focusing on how UK youngsters could help poor communities, rather than what they could learn from them.