First off, I really enjoyed the film. I was introduced to an entirely new paradigm with regards to foreign aid and the developing world more broadly. The idea that institutions must be set-up to allow people in developing countries to thrive on their own seems like a terrific idea. One issue that was introduced in the film, but that was not fleshed out entirely, was: How are these institutions created? For instance, if there are nebulous legal structures within a given developing country, how do people go about correcting this? Could NGOs or certain interested parties lobby for legal reforms? How would this work?

Before the emergence of any burgeoning economy, there must be legal mechanisms in place to protect things like private property. As such, if a country’s laws are not conducive to such protections, then where do we start? This seems like an extremely tall task, does it not?

Also, I wonder where the director of the film comes down on aid for things like health care. Were people interviewed in the film advocating for an end to aid altogether, outside of the disaster relief context?

These were just a few thoughts/questions that I had re: the film.

-Robert Cave