Development program is understood as a series of actions organized with the purpose of improving living conditions in a certain region or country in a comprehensive and sustainable manner. Sometimes to be more explicit they are called economic and social development program.

Development programs can be conceived by the countries, regions or local governments themselves based on their own resources, or the authorities of poor countries propose them while simultaneously requesting help from international organizations or friendly governments.

There are several international cooperation agencies, governments and private parties that finance, support and organize development programs in the so-called developing countries of Africa, Latin America and Southeast Asia.

Among the multilateral organizations that finance development programs are:

The main countries that maintain development programs in the so-called third world are Germany, Canada, the USA, Spain, Italy, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland and, in general, the developed countries of Western Europe.