U.K. will end aid to India in 2015

As India continues to move from a developing nation to a developed one, aid money from the richer nations will begin to go away. The world is currently debating when and if aid money to India should stop. The U.K. has made the next step and announced today that aid to India will end by 2015. India has happily agreed with the decision saying that they now have enough money to fund their own development projects.

From the Guardian, the U.K.’s development secretary Justine Greening explains some of the reasons behind the decision.

"After reviewing the programme and holding discussions with the government of India this week, we agree that now is the time to move to a relationship focusing on skills sharing rather than aid," Greening said.

"Having visited India, I have seen first-hand the tremendous progress being made. India is successfully developing and our own bilateral relationship has to keep up with 21st-century India. It's time to recognise India's changing place in the world.

"It is of course critical that we fulfil all the commitments we have already made and that we continue with those short-term projects already under way which are an important part of the UK and government of India's development programme."

The move follows criticism of the government for maintaining aid to India, which has a booming economy and its own space programme. It will delight Conservative MPs critical of David Cameron's commitment to spending 0.7% of national income on overseas aid.

The changes will mean Britain spending about £200m less from 2013 to 2015 than had been planned by the former international development secretary Andrew Mitchell.