Sustainable Transition From Donor Grant Financing: What Could It Look Like?

Donor transition is an important aspect of sustaining the impact of donor investments after financial support has ceased. This article compares, contrasts, and critiques the transition policies of the top health donors in the Asia Pacific, which includes Global Fund to fight AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria, Gavi-the Vaccine Alliance, World Bank (International Development Association), and the United States US Agency for International Development to gain a deeper understanding of what a sustainable financial transition could look like. A literature review of the academic and gray literature was undertaken to ascertain these donors' transition policies and to determine the success of these policies in ensuring sustainable and effective transition. It is proposed that sustainable transition requires a clearly articulated vision of long-term impact, explicit and transparent transition policies, clear time frames for transition, donor coordination, and evaluation of long-term impacts of donor withdrawal.