Paper short abstract:

The paper looks at how aid can contribute to authoritarian politics. We argue that pro-democracy donors should recognize that what we call “everyday engagement” can entrench authoritarianism. In response, we propose strategies to better account for and respond to democratic erosion.

Paper long abstract:

Authoritarian politics are on the rise. This trend is manifested in the growing number of autocracies worldwide, the increasingly diverse forms authoritarian politics take, and their growing adoption by political actors in what were previously considered democratic states. One consequence is that autocracies now receive the majority of foreign aid. Yet, despite pro-democracy donors’ concern with the current democratic recession, regime type matters little in aid decisions (OECD, 2022). Furthermore, despite regular calls to adapt the way that donors engage with autocratic partners, the reform of aid modalities has been incremental, inconsistent, and problematic. Aid geared towards political processes has been shown to be ineffective in countries that are hard autocracies or are autocratizing. Autocratic partners have grown more adept at subverting democratic norms and aid itself for authoritarian purposes. The combination of these developments means that, in worst cases, donor engagement has contributed to authoritarian entrenchment.

This suggests the need for a reboot of how pro-democracy donors engage authoritarian governments. In response, this paper seeks to answer the following questions: How can pro-democracy donors more effectively engage with authoritarian regimes, or minimally do no harm? Which international practices are most effective at promoting democracy in authoritarian contexts? Building on case studies of both failed and promising donor adaptation and a survey of over 250 sources, we argue that pro-democracy donors should recognize the way that what we call “everyday engagement” entrenches authoritarian practices, better anticipate authoritarian subversion of global norms and aid, and respond to different kinds of democratic.