Work

Relational Governance: Rethinking Donor–Recipient Relations Through the Sawei Lens

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: ABSTRACT Contemporary international development aid is often undermined by relational weaknesses and technical gaps. Amid 2025 aid retrenchment and the de facto dismantling and reorganization of USAID, this article argues for a more relational approach to aid governance. Drawing on sawei (an Ulithian term literally translating to ‘food basket’), an Indigenous Micronesian exchange system from the Pacific, it identifies five principles: obligation, generational continuity, responsibility, symbolic reciprocity and distributed mediation. Rather than presenting sawei as a model for replication, the article uses it as a heuristic for rethinking how donor interests and recipient priorities might be aligned in more durable partnerships.

Source: Journal of International Development

DOI: 10.1002/jid.70115

Author: Wai Yi Ma

Institution: University of Guam

Language: English

Topic: International Development and Aid

Subfield: Development

Field: Social Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

SDGs: Partnerships for the goals, Peace, justice, and strong institutions

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $3,350