Towards "more, better and faster"?

The book examines the efficiency of Austrian and Hungarian international development aid policy along the EU motto “Delivering more, better and faster”, looking at the institutional structure and management, the quantity and quality and the geographical and sectoral allocation of the aid funds. The research finds that Austria, despite a number of achievements thanks to a reform of its development policy, still faces problems with the co-ordination of the activities of its various actors and with elements that inflate the genuineness of its aid. Besides, the level of its Official Development Assistance falls short of the country’s economic capacities, resulting in a low visibility of the country in its partner countries and the donor community. Hungary, being yet in the phase of seeking and shaping its donor profile and institutional structure, struggles with easing the tensions between its restricted aid budget and the international expectations. It should, on the one hand, increase the volume of its bilateral development aid funds, on the other, concentrate on a fewer number of partner countries and sectors in order to ensure a higher degree of efficiency of the aid it provides.