Does U.S. Foreign Aid Corrupt

Abstract

The sudden fall of the Afghan democracy in 2021 had many questioning what factors led to such a quick collapse. Many scholars have blamed the fall of Afghanistan on a variety of factors. However, one reason gets brought up more than others. Scholars emphasize how corruption undermined trust in the government of Afghanistan and that the lack of trust is what made the Taliban takeover so swift. That citizens wanted accountability, and the Afghan government could not provide it to them. The response to this was civilians supporting the Taliban. Specifically, many highlight the role that U.S. aid had on creating a system that lacked accountability and structure. This study attempts to measure the effects of U.S. and Afghan-sponsored aid programs on corruption. This study uses linear regression analysis and multiple fixed effects regression models to determine if increases in foreign aid contributed to the corruption problem in Afghanistan. The results of this study are trivial at best but provide important insights on how a lack of oversight and mindless spending can lead to devastating consequences. This study finds that small aid projects, such as the Community Cohesion Initiative (CCI), work to decrease corruption. This study also finds that increased spending in the Commanders Emergency Response Program (CERP) increases corruption in violent provinces. This study attempts to find a relationship between the amount of U.S. foreign aid spent and the amount of corresponding corruption in Afghanistan. Although many of the results are trivial, this study emphasizes that the U.S. actions contributed to the corruption problem.