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Small Donors in World Politics: The Role of Trust Funds in the Foreign Aid Policies of Central and Eastern European Donors

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  • Balázs Szent-Iványi

    (Aston University
    Corvinus University Budapest)

  • Bernhard Reinsberg

    (University of Cambridge
    University of Glasgow)

  • Simon Lightfoot

    (University of Leeds)

Abstract

The Central and Eastern European (CEE) EU member states have emerged as new donors of international development assistance since the turn of the millennium. The literature has tended to focus on the bilateral components of these policies, and neglected CEE multilateral aid. This paper contributes to filling this gap by examining how and why CEE donors contribute to trust funds operated by multilateral donors. The aim of the paper is twofold: First, it provides a descriptive account of how CEE countries use trust funds in the allocation of their foreign aid. Second, it explains this allocation using data from qualitative interviews with CEE officials. CEE countries make much less use of trust funds than might be expected. This is due not only to the loss of visibility and control over their resources, but also to how CEE companies and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) rarely achieve funding successes at multilateral organisations.

Suggested Citation

  • Balázs Szent-Iványi & Bernhard Reinsberg & Simon Lightfoot, 2019. "Small Donors in World Politics: The Role of Trust Funds in the Foreign Aid Policies of Central and Eastern European Donors," The European Journal of Development Research, Palgrave Macmillan;European Association of Development Research and Training Institutes (EADI), vol. 31(3), pages 663-683, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:pal:eurjdr:v:31:y:2019:i:3:d:10.1057_s41287-018-0175-y
    DOI: 10.1057/s41287-018-0175-y
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    References listed on IDEAS

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