A Vanuatu based think tank is calling for a new approach to the language that surrounds aid.
The Vanuatu based Pacific Institute of Public Policy has released a discussion paper suggesting the need for a rethink some of the language and underlying assumptions surrounding aid in the region
The Institute's executive director, Derek Brien, says most people equate aid with charity, but it's much more complex.
He points to the arrangements that exist between the United States and the Micronesian states under the Compacts of Free Association.
"That's presented on the US side as being the delivery of aid. On the other side of the equation is what countries such as the Federated States of Micronesia and the Marshall Islands are either providing, or selling if you like, strategic security locations for missile testing and military bases. That becomes an effective exchange between two nations based on mutual foreign policy objectives."
The Pacific Institute of Public Policy's executive director, Derek Brien.
