华盛顿全球发展中心的查尔斯·肯尼（Charles Kenny）和安迪·萨姆纳（Andy Sumner）的研究表明，MDG不但刺激了援助流，还将援助流定向至更小、更穷的国家以及教育和公共卫生等更为具体的领域。
A study by Charles Kenny and Andy Sumner for the Center for Global Development in Washington, DC, suggests that the MDGs not only boosted aid flows, but also redirected them toward smaller, poorer countries, and toward targeted areas like education and public health.