Latest news with #BillandMelindaGates
Business Insider
2 days ago
- Health
- Business Insider
Gates Foundation's new world-first contraceptive for African women: what it means for Africa
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is set to launch a new long-acting contraceptive in Africa, beginning with Kenya later this year, as part of a US$2.5 billion commitment to accelerate research and expand services for the health of African women. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is launching a new affordable long-term contraceptive in Africa, starting with Kenya. The contraceptives, including a hormonal IUD effective for up to eight years and a contraceptive patch, aim to address obstacles such as cost and accessibility. While receiving praise, concerns were raised about the ethical implications of externally funded family planning initiatives in Africa. This innovation by the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation follows research showing poor health outcomes for African women, particularly those in underserved communities, and limited R&D funding for women's health conditions beyond cancer. ' Today, women's health issues are still too often misunderstood, misdiagnosed, or ignored. Although women generally live longer than men, they spend 25% more of their lives in poor health. ' Ru-fong Joanne Cheng, Director, Women's Health Innovations, Gates Foundation noted. The new contraceptive: an affordable hormonal intrauterine device (IUD)—is designed to be effective for up to eight years, and will provide a discreet option for women in low-income households. ' A new hormonal IUD designed for affordability and a user-centered experience is being launched in Kenya, Nigeria, and possibly India, ' Dr Anita Zaidi, head of the Gender Equality Division at the Gates Foundation noted. The device is inserted into the uterus, where it releases progestin, a synthetic hormone that thickens cervical mucus to prevent sperm from reaching and fertilising an egg. Ru-fong described the revolutionary contraceptive patch, saying, 'I magine getting six months of contraceptive protection by pressing a small patch onto your skin. Discreet and self-administered.' She further explained that the patch is embedded with microneedles containing progestin, which delivers protection over several months. The foundation emphasized that the new programme will 'ensure that women and girls in low and middle-income countries can access the contraceptives and family planning information they want and thus exercise their right to decide whether to have children and, if so, when and how many.' Dr. Anita also noted that the programme builds on the foundation's 25-year work in maternal and child health, aimed at ending preventable deaths, eliminating deadly infectious diseases, and lifting millions out of poverty by 2045. 'Many women in these communities want to have control over their reproductive health but do not use existing contraceptive methods because of male interference, concerns about side effects, or lack of access to options that meet their specific needs. As a result, nearly half of all pregnancies worldwide—about 45%—are unplanned ' the Foundation said With the help of regional partners and government, the Gates foundation will expand access to the self-injectable contraceptive DMPA-SC to at least 35 countries, including Uganda, Senegal, Malawi, Nigeria, Zambia, and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Other funded innovations include rapid testing for sexually transmitted infections, AI-enabled ultrasound devices, and vaginal health therapies. Why Africa is the Focus According to the Foundation, Sub-Saharan Africa has some of the highest rates of unmet need for family planning globally, with barriers ranging from cost and distance to health facilities to cultural opposition. Many countries also face high rates of adolescent pregnancies, maternal mortality, and limited reproductive health infrastructure. By targeting Africa, the initiative seeks to provide longer-lasting, affordable options in regions where demand for family planning remains largely unmet. As Melinda French Gates emphasized, ' Contraceptives are one of the most powerful tools we have. It puts the power in the hands of young girls and women to plan their families, and quite honestly, to plan their futures.' Potential Implications However, some critics raise concerns that contraceptive programs in Africa may be perceived as externally imposed population control. This notion further suggests that the continent is being used as a testing ground for global health innovations, noting that similar large-scale rollouts are less visible in wealthier nations. Considering concerns from billionaires like Elon Musk and western pro-life activists about declining populations in their own countries, which highlight contrasting demographic priorities, critics argue that the new program not only focuses on population control but also risks taking away one of Africa's major advantages: its growing population.
Forbes
29-05-2025
- Business
- Forbes
What Nonprofit Leaders Can Do In Light Of The Bill Gates Announcement
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - SEPTEMBER 26: Bill Gates speaks onstage for a special conversation during ... More "What's Next? The Future With Bill Gates"at The Paris Theater on September 26, 2024 in New York City. (Photo byfor Netflix) Bill and Melinda Gates built a foundation that has given over $100 billion to nonprofit and nongovernmental organizations around the world for the past 25 years. It is one of the nation's largest and most successful foundations, and many nonprofit leaders have come to depend on it for vital resources and thought leadership. To the dismay of some, and the thrill of others, Bill Gates recently announced his decision to sunset the foundation in 20 years and distribute $200 billion of its assets – and his personal fortune – to achieve three goals: In order to accomplish the goal of distributing so much money in such a short period of time, the Gates Foundation will be forced to substantially increase its annual giving (about $9 billion a year), which is good news for those organizations who are toiling in these vineyards and desire faster change, but obviously concerning for those who see these global challenges as long-lasting and resistant to quick wins. What does this mean for nonprofit organizations and what should their leaders do now? MIT Solve is an initiative of MIT that supports innovators that use tech-based solutions to solve big problems. Its executive director, Hala Hanna, notes that the Gates Foundation has been an important partner for MIT Solve for many years, and 'we both share the belief that innovators are critical to solving global challenges and require targeted support to achieve scale.' Together the Gates Foundation and MIT Solve have collaborated on custom philanthropic programs such as the AI-Enabled Assessments Challenge and have secured additional funding for its innovators. 'While the Foundation's planned wind-down represents a significant shift in the philanthropic landscape, its impact on Solve will be more evolutionary than disruptive,' stated Hanna in an email message to this writer. 'Every year, we work with over 80 supporters and investors to help them achieve their social impact goals. The Foundation's partnership has certainly validated and strengthened how we design innovation challenges, select winners, and deliver entrepreneur support programs. The ultimate vision – which both our organizations share – is that in 20 years this type of risk capital becomes both more available as other funders follow suit and less necessary as capable governments, scaled innovations, and functional markets flourish.' Indeed, fundraising experts such as Ann Fellman, the chief marketing officer at Bloomerang, think that nonprofits need both short-term and long-term fundraising strategies and the flexibility to change those strategies over time. According to Fellman, the Gates Foundation announcement represents an opportunity for nonprofits. Because the Foundation will be more aggressively distributing its funds over the next 20 years, Fellman believes that nonprofit leaders need to ask themselves: do you have a mission and a vision and a connection – not just with the Gates Foundation but also other family foundations who might follow Gates's lead and wind down their operations? Fellman suggests leaning into family foundations to understand how they are governed, how they are distributing their funds and over what period of time. She sees the Gates announcement as signaling a change in how philanthropic institutions see themselves and she believes that this shift might be accelerating faster than what we've been used to in the past. 'There is going to be a $70 trillion transfer of wealth happening over the next two decades, and nonprofit organizations need a strategy to navigate that shift,' stated Fellman in an interview with this writer. 'Nonprofits shouldn't make the mistake of pulling back, deciding for the donor that the time isn't right – now is the time to make the ask. Now is the time to lean in.' Communication between the fundraiser and donor is key according to Fellman. Research that Bloomerang has conducted shows that 65 percent of donors value frequent impact updates on what is happening to their donations but only 36 percent of nonprofits are providing these kinds of regular reports. Fellman believes that as wealth is transferred to younger generations who are used to more real-time, shorter bursts of information, these kinds of updates will become more critical to the fundraising landscape. Transparency is also important. If nonprofits are experiencing a gap in revenues for whatever reason -- changes in government or institutional funding, increased expenses, a crisis of one kind or another – it's critical to identify the gap, make the ask, and communicate the results according to Fellman. Bill Gates has been a legendary corporate leader and philanthropist, and his thought leadership and resources have been an outsized part of the philanthropic landscape for the past 25 years. The next 20 years will see an enormous generational transfer of wealth in this country and nonprofit leaders need to be prepared and willing to shift as the fundraising environment changes with it.
