Ethics and the conduct of international development aid: charity and obligation

Ethical debate around development aid has gradually grown and diversified, and a field that spans some aspects of policy, organizational and personal practice has partly emerged. After characterizing this trend, the paper considers the following: the key question of the types of obligation, if any, involved in aid; is the aid purely charity and beyond obligation(s)? What do different views here imply for roles and conditions in aid? What is the significance of aid, especially technical cooperation, of inter-personal relations and work-style and life-style issues? Will specific ethical guidelines and codes for aid organizations and aid workers be worthwhile?