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<p>In the current trend towards authoritarianism and insularity&#xa0;at the national level, the impact on policy fields such as higher education is inevitable. However, while primarily the domain of governments, international organizations (IOs) also seek to shape policymaking on higher education. This paper explores how IOs aim to influence higher education policy in light of growing national&#xa0;authoritarianism with a longitudinal case of ex-Soviet autocratic Tajikistan from 1991 to 2025. The concept of ‘amicable contempt’ helps explain why democracy-promoting IOs continue operating under authoritarian restrictions and why states permit their ongoing activity. Integrating concepts of ‘donor logics’ and ‘mechanisms of influence’ enables the exploration of how three IOs—the World Bank, the European Union, and the Aga Khan Development Network—have sought to influence higher education policy over time. Whereas World Bank and European Union policies appear less affected by authoritarian decline, the Aga Khan Development Network, as an IO with a civil society donor logic, appears to be most at risk as the Tajik government makes ever bolder moves to shut down or renationalize its ventures. The paper makes a highly timely contribution to building theoretical and empirical knowledge on how IOs operate in higher education in an increasingly authoritarian world.</p>

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International Organizations’ Influence on Higher Education Policy in Authoritarian States: The Case of Tajikistan, 1991–2025

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2026年3月30日

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  • Emma Harden-Wolfson

摘要

In the current trend towards authoritarianism and insularity at the national level, the impact on policy fields such as higher education is inevitable. However, while primarily the domain of governments, international organizations (IOs) also seek to shape policymaking on higher education. This paper explores how IOs aim to influence higher education policy in light of growing national authoritarianism with a longitudinal case of ex-Soviet autocratic Tajikistan from 1991 to 2025. The concept of ‘amicable contempt’ helps explain why democracy-promoting IOs continue operating under authoritarian restrictions and why states permit their ongoing activity. Integrating concepts of ‘donor logics’ and ‘mechanisms of influence’ enables the exploration of how three IOs—the World Bank, the European Union, and the Aga Khan Development Network—have sought to influence higher education policy over time. Whereas World Bank and European Union policies appear less affected by authoritarian decline, the Aga Khan Development Network, as an IO with a civil society donor logic, appears to be most at risk as the Tajik government makes ever bolder moves to shut down or renationalize its ventures. The paper makes a highly timely contribution to building theoretical and empirical knowledge on how IOs operate in higher education in an increasingly authoritarian world.