LETTERS : Aid agencies' concern over cash and care

From Sir Harold Walker Sir: Richard Dowden implies that some aid agencies are suspicious of Care because it "specialises in rapid delivery of relief supplies and food aid and believes in getting there quickly", making it a natural target for the television cameras.

I don't know about the suspicion, but Care does pride itself on logistic efficiency in large-scale emergencies. It attaches just as much importance, however, to long-term development work: Care has been in Rwanda 10 years, Ethiopia 10 years, Bangladesh 3

0 years.

To stick with the difference between short- and long -term, I note that Richard Dowden says, as if it was a recent development, that Care Britain "has" brought on to its board several heavyweights, citing the case of Sir Peter Preston, a former PermanentUnder-Secretary of the Overseas Development Administration. Peter Preston has been a member of the board for 10 years! It is good that Richard Dowden acknowledges that the aid agencies co-operate at least "reasonably well" in the field. One of the most impressive projects I saw when I was ambassador in Ethiopia (1986-89) was a joint Oxfam/Save the Children Fund/Care proj ect for getting water to Somali refugees, and Care is engaged in many similar joint ventures round the world.

Yours sincerely, HAROLD WALKER Chairman Care Britain Woking Surrey