Public Support for Aid Conditionality: Evidence from a Factorial Survey in Germany, Japan and the U.S.

Despite its questionable effectiveness, aid conditionality remains central to donor policies. This persistence reflects its domestic political utility: donor publics often overestimate aid budgets, perceive tradeoffs with domestic spending, and scrutinize expenditures with diffuse or long-term payoffs. In such contexts, conditionality signals accountability by imposing explicit expectations and consequences for recipients.