Gates Foundation CEO urges billionaires to increase philanthropic contributions in annual letter
LONDON: In his annual letter released on Thursday, Mark Suzman, CEO of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, urged philanthropists to increase their donations and take immediate action to address the unprecedented struggles countries face in the fight against poverty, disease and inequality.
The Gates Foundation, one of the largest contributors to global health, has revealed plans to allocate $8.6 billion in 2024 – its largest budget yet.
The budget increase corresponds to the decline in progress made by nonprofits in their efforts to end poverty, fight treatable diseases and end hunger.
The reasons for this regression are mainly attributed to factors such as the pandemic, ongoing wars and the considerable debt burden in many countries.
“We believe the most impactful area of philanthropy is addressing human equity, inequity and investing in human capital broadly, which is essentially health and education, the next generation of the planet, because this is how we offer opportunities to the poorest and poorest. the most vulnerable,” Suzman told Arab News.
Amid the devastating ongoing conflicts in Gaza and Yemen, the foundation has provided financial assistance to UNICEF with the aim of helping to provide essential medicines and medical care.
Guzman stressed the importance of forming partnerships, particularly in the Gulf, due to the substantial government and philanthropic resources that have the potential to make an impact not only in the region but also on a global scale.
Suzman gave Arab News an overview of the Gates Foundation’s ongoing contributions and partnerships in the Middle East and North Africa region, saying: “In the UAE, we helped establish the Fund Reaching the Last Mile, which helps end neglected tropical diseases. In Qatar, we have a joint fund called Nanmo, which works on agricultural innovations.
“We are working with the International Livestock Research Institute, based in Ethiopia, to then expand this activity to many African countries.
“We also invest in people. We have a partnership with ICBA (International Center for Biosaline Agriculture), which offers scholarships to Arab women.
“We have a very large partnership with several countries and the Islamic Development Bank – the Lives and Livelihoods Fund, which has funding from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and the Gates Foundation . »
In the past, Lebanon has received assistance from the Gates Foundation and benefited from the development of waterless toilet technology used in some refugee camps.
The foundation’s appeal builds on the Giving Pledge, launched by Bill and Melinda Gates and Warren Buffett in 2010, as a commitment for billionaires to give the majority of their wealth during their lifetime or upon death to someone cause whatever.
The foundation and Suzman are committed to making an impact, as evidenced by the focus on research and development of multiple projects.
These projects include the development of a global agricultural information system that would benefit poor farmers around the world, as well as cost-effective measures to reduce maternal and child mortality rates.
“We helped co-found and launch the GAVI Vaccine Alliance, which helps supply and purchase vaccines for low-income countries, and significant progress has also been made in the development of new vaccines in areas like rotavirus and meningitis,” Suzman explained.
“The overall impact of this has been that preventable child deaths have fallen from more than 10 million per year in 2000 to 5 million per year. Currently, we believe this can be accelerated. You will see many of these declines reflected in the MENA region, which has seen significant progress,” he continued.
Suzman described the foundation as “a long-term development organization rather than a humanitarian organization,” striving to bring about permanent change.
The Gates Foundation intends to increase its annual budget to $9 billion in the coming year and keep it there.
Although the foundation board approved this year’s budget, it also urged the foundation to explore sustainable funding options for its work once budget growth ceases.
Since its inception, the Gates Foundation has distributed more than $71.4 billion.
