More donors, more choice? Challenging notions that the Zambian government can secure greater policy space in the changing aid landscape

在向多极化全球秩序转变和发展援助流动不断变化的背景下，在审查非洲机构方面，目前的知识基础存在差距。这项研究将批评流行的观念，即不断变化的援助格局给非洲国家更多的“选择”，他们接受的资金，并扩大他们的回旋余地时，处理经合组织-发援会发展伙伴。它将调查和分析非洲国家在与经合组织-发援会发展伙伴的关系中发挥代理作用的程度，以及由于非经合组织-发援会发展伙伴的（重新）出现，非洲国家的回旋余地在多大程度上得到扩大。它将特别关注赞比亚，该国历来从经合组织-发援会发展伙伴获得大量援助，但也与中国等（重新）新兴的非经合组织-发援会发展伙伴有着重要的历史和当代联系。它将研究赞比亚国家的不同部分如何在谈判中制定机构，他们的回旋余地是否正在扩大，以及增加政策空间的机会是什么。此外，它将考虑政府和西方发展伙伴之间关于其他行为体活动的信息不对称，以及政府是否能够利用这些信息来创造回旋余地。这些问题对于考虑援助系统是否以及如何由于非经合组织-发援会捐助国的（重新）出现而发生变化十分重要，为了回答研究问题，将在赞比亚的海外实地考察中获得定性数据。数据将通过采访赞比亚政府和发展伙伴的官员获得。访谈将特别侧重于他们谈判一揽子财政计划的经验以及对这些谈判中的发展伙伴和政府优先事项的看法。他们还将侧重于赞比亚官员与非西方发展伙伴合作的经验，以及西方官员对赞比亚非西方行为体的了解。这些数据将与包括档案在内的文件证据进行三角测量，记录赞比亚与发展伙伴的国际关系的公开声明和与具体谈判有关的内部文件。

There is a gap in the current knowledge base in relation to examining African agency in the context of the move to a multipolar global order, and the shifting flows of development assistance. This research will critique the prevalent notion that the changing aid landscape gives African states more 'choice' in the finance they accept, and expands their room-for-manoeuvre when dealing with OECD-DAC development partners. It will investigate and analyse the degree of agency African states exercise in relationships with OECD-DAC development partners, and to what extent their room-for-manoeuvre is expanding as a result of the (re-)emergence of non-OECD-DAC development partners. In particular it will look at Zambia, a country which has historically received high levels of aid from OECD-DAC development partners but which also has significant, historical and contemporary, links to (re-)emerging non-OECD-DAC development partners such as China. It will examine how different parts of the Zambian state enact agency in negotiations, whether their room-for-manoeuvre is expanding, and what opportunities to increase policy space are made available by this. Furthermore, it will consider information asymmetries between the government and Western development partners about the activities of other actors and whether the government is able to instrumentalise these to create room-for-manoeuvre. These questions are important in considering if and how the aid system is changing as the result of the (re)emergence of non-OECD-DAC donors.To answer the research questions, qualitative data will be obtained during overseas fieldwork in Zambia. Data will be obtained through interviewing officials from the Zambian government and development partners. Interviews will particularly focus on their experiences of negotiating financial packages and perceptions of development partner and government priorities within those negotiations. They will also focus on the experiences of Zambian officials working with non-Western development partners, and the knowledge that Western officials have of non-Western actors in Zambia. This data will be triangulated with documentary evidence, including archival, recording both public statements about Zambia's international relations with development partners and internal documents relating to specific negotiations.