The Development Assistance Committee (DAC) is a unique international forum where donor governments and multilateral organisations – such as the World Bank and the United Nations – come together to help partner countries reduce poverty and achieve the Millennium Development Goals. This means seeking new ways of working to increase not only the quantity, but also the quality of aid – in other words, to improve aid effectiveness.

To this end, the DAC issues analysis and guidance in key areas of development and forges ties with other policy communities to coordinate efforts. Its members also work together to assess each others’ aid policies and their implementation so as to promote good practice. The DAC’s objective is to be the definitive source of statistics on official development assistance (ODA).

The DAC groups 24 member countries. Their policy makers and experts participate in working parties and networks that tackle major thematic areas in development, often in collaboration with representatives from partner countries and civil society institutions. This work is supported by the Development Co-operation Directorate (DCD), one of the OECD's substantive directorates. The DAC Chair is Mr. Eckhard Deutscher.

The DAC recently completed a reflection exercise on the future of development co-operation, charting the way forward in an increasingly inter-connected world.

For further information, see:

The OECD DAC (The work of the DAC.)
Inside the DAC (How does the DAC function?)
DAC in Dates (Major events from 1960 to 2006)
The Mandate of the DAC and its Subsidiary Bodies
DAC members and their date of membership