Foreign aid: who gives the most, and where does it go?

Rich countries are giving more in foreign aid than ever before. But which countries are the most generous?
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Rich countries are giving away more in aid than at any other time on record. In 2016 more than $140bn was distributed around the world.
According to the latest breakdown in 2015 America gave the most money away - nearly $31bn to at least 40 countries and organisations such as the world bank. This included $770m to Pakistan and $250m to Mexico. This may sound generous but the United States has the largest economy in the world.
American foreign aid spending in 2015 was only 0.17% of the gross national income. Far less than other rich countries.
Sweden and Norway are the biggest givers, donating over 1% of their gross national income to foreign aid. The biggest receivers of aid in 2015 were Afghanistan, India, Vietnam, Ethiopia and Indonesia.
Afghanistan received $3.8bn and India $3.1bn. Despite being the second biggest economy in the world, China received $1.5bn in development aid in 2015. This included around $750m from Germany and $67m from Britain.
The total amount of foreign aid is at an all time high - up 9% in 2016. This is largely down to the generosity of six countries who meet or exceed the United Nations foreign aid target, donating more than 0.7% of gross national income.
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