Impact of foreign aid on the ecological sustainability of sub-Saharan African countries

It remains an open question whether official development assistance (ODA) has really effectively contributed to sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) countries' sustainability. In this work, the ecological footprint model was used to quantitatively study the ecological sustainability of SSA countries. The non-linear dynamic impact of ODA to the SSA ecological deficit was investigated by the proposed dynamic threshold panel model from the perspective of the national governance system and governance capabilities of the recipient countries (SSA). At the same time, in order to further test the direct effects of ODA, an impulse response function was developed to study the impact model of immediate changes in ODA on the economic development and renewable energy development of recipient countries. The results show that the ODA effect of countries with good national governance systems and governance capabilities is much better than that of countries with poor national governance systems and governance capabilities. SSA countries do not have the awareness of independent development of renewable energy, but their economic development needs the help of renewable energy. SSA countries should strengthen their own national governance capabilities and governance system construction, and develop new energy-economic policies based on its own conditions instead of relying on international aid based on outdated thinking. [Display omitted] •The effects of official development assistance (ODA) on sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries are explored.•The dynamic panel threshold model and impulse response function were adopted in 33 SSA countries.•The quality ofpolicy plays a crucial role in the impact of ODA on the ecological environment.•SSA countries do not have the consciousness to develop renewable energy independently.