What do remote outer island populations in the Pacific think about foreign aid? Insights from Mauke, Cook Islands

Abstract

MotivationPacific aid research has largely focused on national issues and social justice, rather than spatial justice and the development of remote outer islands. In particular, the perspectives of remote outer island populations on aid have not previously been assessed.PurposeThis study explores the experiences and views of the population of a remote Pacific outer island, Mauke in the Cook Islands, on the foreign aid they receive. By listening to and learning from local people living with aid on a remote outer island, this article seeks to address spatially insensitive Pacific aid research and policy. Based on these insights, the article derives policy implications for aid and development actors working on Mauke and other remote outer islands in the Pacific.Methods and approachEmploying a mixed‐methods approach, this article draws on field research conducted on Mauke, involving in‐depth semi‐structured interviews and a quantitative survey.FindingsThe people of Mauke are divided about whether the island should receive more or less aid. Those calling for more aid tend to be younger; they stress the need for infrastructure development. Those advocating for less aid tend to be older; they argue that aid has harmed Mauke by decreasing endogenous initiatives and creating social tensions, both of which reduce social cohesion among the remote island population.Policy implicationsRather than investing in “community‐based/−led development”—doing development with the community, aid to remote Pacific outer islands should focus more on “community development”—with the aim of enhancing social cohesion among peripheral islands. Donors, governments, and development partners must carefully reflect on the degree to which their interventions may harm social cohesion and the endogenous development potential of remote outer island populations. These implications matter given the persistence of uncritical (mis)representations and (mis)conceptions of remote Pacific outer island populations as harmonious and mutually supportive.

Pacific perspectives on aid and development

“…Read together, the articles do not show that aid has failed in the Pacific—although some projects clearly have (Kessler, 2023), with others even having negative consequences (Kessler, 2023; Vunibola, 2023). It is rather that aid could do more to promote development and do less harm, not to mention generate less resentment, if donors were to set aside their own interests, become more flexible, and take time to listen carefully to what Pacific people have to say.…”

“…Fidali et al (2023) illustrate this well as they describe the struggles of small, grassroots organizations trying to access funding from complex climate finance mechanisms in Solomon Islands, Fiji, and Samoa. Similarly, Kessler demonstrates the importance of understanding outer island contexts (Kessler, 2023). And Tsujita (2023) and Alofaituli (2023) show, in different ways, the failure of donors to adapt aid to the social realities of Samoa.…”