Billionaire philanthropist Bill Gates just gave the development world a jolt of much-needed good news, declaring that he's doubling his giving to $200 billion over the next 20 years. We analyze what prompted it and what it means.
Also in today’s edition: The World Bank orders Africa CDC to cut positions, the U.S. tries to replace the U.N. in Gaza, and more philanthropic buzz.
 Happening today: Europe’s development funding is changing. With defense spending up, traditional aid is shifting toward investment that benefits both sides. What does this mean for vulnerable countries and climate action?
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The Gates Foundation has made big advances over the last 25 years using a methodical, measured approach to philanthropy.
But for its 25th anniversary, the world’s biggest development-focused foundation is making a bold bet on the future, pledging to double its giving to $200 billion over the next two decades — and then close up shop in 2045.
“It’s a dramatic gesture by arguably the most important foundation that we have globally that still reflects this kind of humanitarian ethos that rose and governed so many of our institutions after the Second World War,” Amir Pasic, dean of the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy at Indiana University, tells me.
“I was surprised mostly by the timing,” he adds, noting that while most people knew the foundation would eventually wind down, they thought it would be decades after Gates’ death.
“I think [the foundation] has been talking about [sunsetting] for some time, and I can only imagine the events of the last three, four months ... at least crystallized in their mind that this is a good opportunity to focus on what they’ve learned over the past 25 years, and double down on those areas where they think they can make the most difference,” Pasic says.
The past three to four months is, of course, an allusion to the return of U.S. President Donald Trump, who has taken a sledgehammer to U.S. foreign aid, smashing many of the global health programs Gates has worked to build for decades.
Perhaps that’s why Gates met with Trump shortly before he took office, hailing the meeting as a productive one. Today, however, after the president’s scorched-earth policies, the normally reserved Gates has dipped his toe into politics, criticizing the administration’s aid cuts and calling them “horrifying,” “stunning,” and “tragic.”
But the billionaire co-founder of Microsoft says he remains optimistic that the progress of the last 25 years can be cemented in the next 20.
“We’re placing our bet on human ingenuity — on the scientists, health workers, educators, farmers, advocates, and more whose tireless work has already delivered some of the most dramatic gains in human history. They haven’t given up, and neither will we,” Gates wrote in his Optimist newsletter. “While our timeline is changing, our mission is not.”
Read: Risk-averse Gates bets his fortune on the future
+ On May 8, Bill Gates held a discussion and lunch in New York City to celebrate his announcement. Spotted: Michael Bloomberg; journalist Nicholas Kristof; Mavis Owusu-Gyamfi of the African Center for Economic Transformation; Cari Tuna of Open Philanthropy; Ajay Piramal of Piramal Group Foundation; Dr. Tariro Makadzange of Africa Clinical Research Network; and musician Jon Batiste.
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Where diplomacy meets innovation: Concordia Europe Summit 2025
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The World Bank, which supports 87 positions at the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, is directing the Pan-African public health agency to cut roughly 50% of those positions, my colleague Sara Jerving writes.
Africa CDC has over 520 staff members — excluding short-term consultants — through a mix of funding from African governments and 11 bilateral and multilateral partners. Its financing from the World Bank includes two major grants.
Dr. Jean Kaseya, the director-general of Africa CDC, wrote an email to staff last week — which Sara obtained — saying the World Bank directed his agency to begin implementing what he called “significant organizational changes” to align with the current situation of aid cut[s] by showing value for money, efficiency, sustainability and impact.”
Kaseya said this directive to cut positions came after he met with the World Bank in Washington, D.C.
“While we will advocate for the retention of critical positions, we cannot guarantee outcomes,” Kaseya wrote.
Exclusive: World Bank directs Africa CDC to cut dozens of positions
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Swiss town ain’t big enough for the both of ‘em
The Trump administration and Israel are trying to sideline the United Nations with a plan to enlist a newly established Geneva-based foundation to run humanitarian operations in the war-torn strip, according to diplomatic and humanitarian sources.
On Wednesday, Trump’s Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, provided an overview to the U.N. Security Council on U.S. efforts to address the humanitarian crisis in Gaza. My colleague Colum Lynch writes that Witkoff and his team have also held meetings with David Beasley, a former South Carolina governor who served as executive director of the World Food Programme, to participate in the project, according to a source familiar with the matter.
A foundation paper circulating in U.N. circles and shared with Devex said the proposed entity’s board of directors would include Nate Mook, former CEO of World Central Kitchen, while Beasley is listed as a member of the advisory board — though it says his participation has not been finalized.
The news is not going down well with aid groups. “Israeli officials have sought to shut down the existing aid system run by 15 UN agencies and 200 NGOs and partners,” said Jens Laerke, Geneva-based spokesperson for the U.N. Office of the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. “It appears to be a deliberate attempt to weaponize the aid and we have warned against that for a very long time. Aid should be provided based on humanitarian need to whomever needs it.”
Read: Trump administration pushes controversial Gaza relief plan on UN
Tomorrow, May 13, join Richard Gowan of the International Crisis Group and Natalie Samarasinghe of the Open Society Foundations for a frank discussion about the crossroads facing the United Nations. Space is filling up fast, so register now.
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Cautious rich Asians
Bill Gates is not the only billionaire in town (though he’s definitely one of the most well-known). Asia is home to more than 1,000 billionaires who are expected to collectively sit on a staggering $4.7 trillion in wealth by 2026.
While philanthropic giving in the region only accounts for only a small slice of that fortune, it’s on the upswing, fueled in part by the explosive growth of tech, the surge of unicorn startups, and booming financial markets, my colleague Ayenat Mersie writes.
For comparison, U.S. giving has hovered at around 2% of gross domestic product for decades. If Asian donors were to match that, an estimated $702 billion could be unleashed.
But right now, Asian philanthropy is a bit of a black box. Current estimates are hazy because most giving in Asia — as it is in many lower-income countries — tends to be informal and family-based.
Many donors also have a more cautious approach than some of their Western counterparts, says Luis Alvarado, who heads the Giving to Amplify Earth Action initiative at the World Economic Forum.
“These are some of the pain points and tensions of Western philanthropy who push for bigger dollars, bigger figures, bigger banks, bigger big bets, right? Asian philanthropy is trying to grapple with how they want to do it,” Alvarado says. “I don’t think they want to replicate the Western model, but they are very committed to outcomes.”
Read: Asia’s wealth is booming. What about its giving? 
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The insurance breakthrough that development has overlooked
Insurance boosts SDGs by 5.8 points per 1% adoption yet barely appears in development goals.
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Her enterprise now serves 17 million vulnerable customers despite corporate skepticism. The breakthrough insight? Progress isn’t just pushing forward — it’s preventing disasters that pull people back.
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In response to severe aid funding cuts, International Rescue Committee President David Miliband urges redirecting funds from climate and refugee programs in wealthier nations to lifesaving aid in low-income countries. [ABC News]
South Africa has criticized the United States’ plan to resettle white Afrikaners as refugees. [BBC]
American foundations are reportedly banding together to respond to possible changes to their U.S. tax-exempt status. [The Wall Street Journal]
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Thank you for reading today’s Newswire, edited by Fiona Zublin, copy edited by Nicole Tablizo, and produced by Yula Mediavillo and Mariane Samson. Have a news tip? Email anna.gawel@devex.com.
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