In Asia, Africa, Latin America, India, the poorer areas of Europe, there are countless babies living who would formerly have died of disease or malnutrition, countless children with bodies being decently fed and clothed, brains being nourished, who 20 years ago, 10, five, would have hungered both physically and mentally. Through education, health and housing projects, countless women are emerging from the slavery of centuries. Men without number have work where none before existed, have knowledge and skills and therefore human dignity where heretofore there was only ignorance and waste. There is power where once rivers ran unharnessed, there arc green fields in place of desert, cattle where no animal could lately live, in ancient wildernesses thrive pleasant townships supported by busy factories, connected by good roads and railways to the world beyond.
And the greater part of this – but not to belittle the efforts of the Soviet bloc (again ‘however mixed their motivation’) or the other countries of the West, all of whom must share the credit – the greater part of all this self-propagating wealth is the result of aid from the United States at the current contribution of 15 dollars – five guineas – per citizen per year [£120 in 2020 prices]. What an investment! What could not 30 dollars a year do!