2012/01/01 by Andreas Freytag, Jac C. Heckelman · 8 citations
Social Sciences · Computer Science · #International Development and Aid #Political Conflict and Governance #Economic Growth and Development #Democratization #Transition (genetics) #Political science #Economy #Economic system #Economics #Economic geography #Democracy #Politics
paper · doi:10.1628/093245612804469809
published in Journal of Institutional and Theoretical Economics JITE 168(4), 636-657 (Mohr Siebeck Verlag)
openalex publication_date 2012/01/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
Over the past 20 years, democracy promotion has become a pillar of USAIDs mission. We assess the success of US aid by testing whether it is enhancing democracy in a panel of 26 transition countries. Using Freedom House Nations in Transit data, we find that aid has generally not been a significant factor in a countrys overall democracy score, but has significantly contributed to certain components of the democracy score, namely civil society, electoral process, judicial framework, and media independence. In addition, the impact of aid is found to depend on the number of years of past central planning.