Research


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Abstract:  State-to-non-state foreign aid transfers have increased steadily over recent decades. Existing research suggests that donors are more likely to bypass recipient governments in weak governance settings. But do these donor motivations resonate with recipient priorities? As end beneficiaries, recipients’ views on foreign aid are crucial for informing effective implementation strategies. Yet little is known about whether recipient perspectives align with the donor rationale for using bypass channels. This paper argues that recipient citizens’ domestic governance concerns influence their perceptions of state-led aid management and, in turn, their preferences for aid delivery channels. Drawing on primary data from a nationally representative survey in Bangladesh, the study finds that corruption concerns are positively associated with support for channeling aid through non-governmental organizations. These findings suggest growing donor responsiveness to recipients’ contextual needs, while also highlighting the dilemma for pursuing a state-led development approach in weak governance settings. 

Abstract: The traditional perception is that foreign aid provides leaders in recipient states access to nontax revenue, which incumbents may be able to manipulate in order to provide public or private goods as is required to maintain office. Recognizing this possibility, donors have been shifting away from direct government-to-government aid and toward bypass aid, administered by NGOs and civil society groups rather than the regime directly. Receiving aid through alternative channels is designed to increase aid’s effectiveness, yet it has potential implications for incumbent leaders who may have less ability to manipulate aid receipts to their benefit. In this paper, we argue that bypass aid should negatively affect leaders’ tenure, conditional on the political institutions in place. Using data on bypass aid from 2004 to 2017, we find evidence of a punishing effect and conclude that bypass aid is a particularly acute problem for leaders in authoritarian regimes. The findings imply that efficiency and stability may present a tradeoff for potential donors and that bypass aid may not be the panacea of the aid effectiveness movement. 

Abstract: Women’s political representation has increased substantially over recent decades due to concerted efforts, including quotas, to increase female legislative representation in electoral democracies. While studies find that female leadership improves educational outcomes and the provision of public health services, we know little about the impact of women leaders on their female constituents’ health status in less developed countries. In this study, we take advantage of novel geocoded survey data in Bangladesh to employ spatial–temporal methods for investigating whether the presence of women parliamentarians improves prenatal care usage − a key maternal health indicator. Using three different identification approaches, we find evidence, contrary to our expectations, that women’s electoral representation decreases the likelihood of prenatal clinic attendance in electoral districts in Bangladesh. Reflecting on the unusual findings, we explore several factors that may contribute to the maternal health status in woman-led constituencies. Our analysis suggests that women’s electoral representation does not spontaneously improve outcomes for women’s issues. The counterintuitive findings imply that political-institutional and electoral contexts, as well as political culture, may mitigate the impact of women’s political agency on gender-sensitive development outcomes in less developed countries. 

Abstract: Western donors have progressively increased the amount of foreign aid allocated through bypass channels, particularly for recipients with weak domestic institutions. Rather than giving money directly to recipient governments, aid is given to non-governmental organizations working on the ground in those countries. Explanations for this shift range from increased donor attention to effectiveness, a desire to deliver assistance directly to those in need, and enhanced legitimacy by working with local civil society partners. Donors, however, face a trade-off when deciding whether or not to allocate aid through bypass channels. Because bypass aid is not given directly to the recipient government, the donor has less leverage to prop up friendly regimes or buy policy concessions. We argue that as donors balance competing motivations, geo-strategic incentives can, at times, trump concerns regarding best practices of poverty alleviation. Using data on bypass aid from 2004 to 2019, we find that donor’s commitment to good governance is ameliorated in strategically important recipient states. Strategic partners who improve their domestic governance are rewarded with less bypass aid (more government-to-government aid) at higher rates than less strategic recipients. These results highlight potential limitations of the good governance movement in foreign aid. 

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