Aid Without Trust

Civil Society and Donor Dynamics after the 2025 Myanmar Earthquake

Abstract

The humanitarian response to the 2025 earthquake in Myanmar has been influenced by the public distrust toward state institutions in the wake of a fragile socio-political environment under the military junta, leading to a rapid emergence of grassroots networks and civil society-led organizations. This study examines how donors and fundraisers navigate aid delivery in a governance environment characterized by trust deficiency, with a focus on the interplay between donor decision-making, organizational leadership, and community-driven relief efforts. Our research centers on the following question: How does distrust in official disaster relief organizations influence donor behavior and the structure of aid delivery in post-earthquake Myanmar? This research employs a mixed-methods approach, combining a cross-sectional analysis of 6 in-depth interviews with leaders of relief fund collection campaigns and quantitative data collected from 78 donors via structured questionnaires. Our findings first underscore transparency as the main driver of confidence in alternative relief channels and the strengthening of social cohesion through more direct, people-to-people aid. Results also reveal a deep-seated skepticism not only toward the military junta but also toward large-scale NGOs, leading many donors to favor smaller, more transparent community-led initiatives.