Can Official Development Assistance Enhance Social Equality Within Planetary Boundary: Evidence From the Least Developed Countries

Official development assistance (ODA) is an important global partnership strategy for promoting global sustainable development and reducing inequality within and among countries, especially for the least developed countries (LDCs). However, little is known about whether ODA can effectively promote social equality while respecting planetary boundary. Therefore, we establish an integrated “Social equality‐ Planetary boundary‐ODA” framework to investigate how ODA influences social equality within planetary boundary. Considering regional development stages and investment preferences, the improvement strategies for ODA are proposed and examined. Taking LDCs as the example, our results show that ODA positively affects education equality and gender equality but negatively impacts income equality, while maintaining the planetary boundary. Moreover, a productive assistance strategy can enhance social equality with minimal impact on planetary boundary. Our research contributes to more effective ODA strategies for promoting sustainable development of underdeveloped regions within a just and safe boundary.