Collaboration between OECD and IATI strengthens efforts to track aid through subcontractors

A new collaboration between the OECD Development Co-operation Directorate (DCD) and the IATI Secretariat is showing what’s possible when transparency meets innovation. Through the collaboration between the OECD and the IATI Secretariat, the initial findings are uncovering how aid flows through global delivery chains more visibly - and why working together is essential to make these flows clearer and more accountable.

The IATI Secretariat presented early findings from its collaboration with the DCD at the Development Finance Data Forum, an open session of the DAC Working Party on Development Finance Statistics (WP-STAT). This marked the first time the WP-STAT has opened its discussions to external participants in this way, reflecting growing collaboration between OECD DAC and external stakeholders, including IATI, and recognition of IATI’s role in advancing transparency across development finance.

Why track subcontracting?

Under the OECD Development Assistance Committee (DAC) Recommendation on Untying Official Development Assistance (ODA), donors have pledged to ensure that aid to least developed and low-income countries is not tied to the purchase of goods or services from donor countries.

Despite these commitments, the OECD notes that high-value aid contracts are still most often awarded to suppliers based in donor countries (see Working Paper below). This raises concerns about donor-country bias and the limited participation of local firms in aid delivery.

Currently, OECD-DAC reporting on contract awards covers only public contracts (by donor and recipient governments) and not procurement contracts by NGOs and prime contractors - private firms or organisations hired by donors to manage aid projects and oversee subcontractors responsible for implementation. This data offers limited visibility into the subcontracting that happens further down the delivery chain.

Using data on subcontracting

This OECD-IATI pilot seeks to address this gap. It explores whether examining the next level of contracting - the subcontracts awarded by prime contractors - could provide a more complete reflection of how aid is being untied in practice and the extent to which local procurement is taking place.

To do this, the study examined two data sources on subcontracts: data collected directly by Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) from its prime contractors, and data published by organisations in IATI.

The pilot focused on:

• Assessing the feasibility of tracking subcontracts across the aid delivery chain.
• Demonstrating how this information can:

1. Strengthen donor assessments of untying commitments.
2. Promote greater transparency, accountability, and locally led development.

As part of the study, the IATI Secretariat analysed data published by several prime contractors funded by the UK or Dutch government. Using IATI data, the Secretariat identified sub-contractors by name and country.  

Pilot: Early findings

Early findings show that capturing data on aid subcontracts is both possible and valuable.

• The pilot confirmed that different data models offer complementary strengths: Australia’s PERFORMS system provides robust, centrally managed data with clear insights into subcontracting trends, while IATI’s decentralised model enables broader accessibility and real-time mapping of project-level relationships.
• The findings also note that data quality and coverage vary across IATI publishers.This challenge reinforces the importance of continued investment in capacity-building and interoperability between systems.

Initial findings were shared on 14 October 2025 at the DAC Working Party on Development Finance Statistics (WP-STAT) open session, the Development Finance Data Forum in Paris. The discussion brought together diverse perspectives and confirmed how data on aid subcontracts can help donors, implementing partners, and local suppliers better understand where aid money flows. This can, in turn, support efforts to promote aid untying and locally led development.

This marks the first presentation of the pilot’s findings. The IATI Secretariat will continue working with the OECD and partners to refine methodologies and explore how these insights can inform broader efforts to improve the transparency and fairness of aid procurement.

Read the OECD DAC Working Paper:

DAC Working Party on Development Finance Statistics, Exploring methods to track aid subcontracts