150093 UE East Asian Donor Countries: Aid Superpowers or Niche Players? (2016W)

Why does East Asian foreign aid have the features it has? What kinds of experiences and values have shaped the content and strategies of foreign aid giving in Japan, China and South Korea? Can we speak of an East Asian approach towards foreign aid? To what extent are domestic models of development reflected in the East Asian donors' foreign aid programs? This course discusses these and other questions also in the light of the Asian Investment and Infrastructure Bank that was launched by China in 2014.
The aim of this class is to analyze the motivations and objectives of East Asian donors and to examine the content and priorities of their foreign aid programs. Students are also going to study the structures of official development assistance (ODA) in these countries. The focus will be on China, Japan and South Korea.
This course is primarily based on the discussion of scholarly works, but also on the analysis of data and policy papers provided by the OECD-DAC and donor governments.
At the end of the course students will be able to understand theoretical approaches and basic features of aid relationships and development cooperation. Students will also be able to give an overview on the history of East Asia's foreign aid and explain the various dimensions (diplomatic, commercial, humanitarian etc.) of aid. Furthermore, students will be able to explain the priorities of East Asian ODA programs and to discuss the "toxic aid" claim.