Japan's development assistance in the Republic of Palau: Community impacts and effects

Palau is an immensely complex place, where the trajectories of colonialism, development discourse, and global economy converge and integrate. Asian powers have continued to dominate the region's political economy---they have had strong impacts on the region in terms of investment, development aid, and tourism development. In this study I map the impacts of Japanese official development assistance (ODA) on present-day Palau. I explore whether the introduction of new fishing-aid facilities has had any influence on the village life of recipient communities. My fieldwork indicates that the productivity of fishing activities has been increased by the introduction of new equipment and systems. However, at the same time, it reveals that marine resources are being depleted and that there is now an over-supply of fish products. I employ the case of inshore fishery development to make more general arguments concerning the broader impacts that development and modernization are having on Palau.