Humanitarian aid doesn't come cheap
The professionalisation of aid, and its concentration in a small number of mega-NGOs, has caused its own problems
President Michael D Higgins meeting refugees at the Goal nutrition centre in Tierkadi Refugee Camp, during his visit to Ethiopia in 2014. Photograph: Chris Bellew/Fennell
Who knows what the public wants from humanitarian aid agencies? Certainly not the public anyway, judging by the findings of a new survey by Amárach Research. The poll, published last week, found contradictory attitudes towards the charity sector in general. A clear majority (68 per cent) believes charities should get the best professionals possible working for them, it found, yet almost as many (64 per cent) think the majority of work done by these outfits should be done by volunteers. People want the highest standards of governance and professionalism, but just 41 per cent believe charities need to pay competitive wages to get the best people to work for them.