This Week in Global Development

By Devex | Global DevelopmentNews

This Week in Global Development episodes

November 02, 2023 Uncertainty over PEPFAR's future and controversy around UNRWA
The future of PEPFAR, the flagship United States global HIV/AIDS program credited with saving millions of lives over the past couple of decades, hangs in the balance due to an ongoing political stalemate and accusations that it funds abortion. This week we looked into what the uncertainty over its reauthorization means for organizations dependent on its funding.

The growing mistrust between the global north and global south is evident in a report on the world’s preparedness for the next pandemic from the Global Preparedness Monitoring Board. We also followed a panel discussion at the European Union’s Global Gateway Forum, which found that a patchwork of local regulations are the main obstacle to the EU's promises to shift health manufacturing to African countries.

Meanwhile, as the tragic conflict continues in Gaza, provide an update on the work and future of UNRWA, the agency which has emerged as the main source of aid to Palestinian civilians, sheltering more than 690,000 people who have been forced from their homes.

For the latest episode of the podcast, Devex President and Editor-in-Chief Raj Kumar sits down with Jen Kates, senior vice president and director of global health and HIV policy at KFF, as well as Devex Senior Global Reporter Colum Lynch, to discuss the top stories from the past week.

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33 min
October 27, 2023 An update on the EU's Global Gateway project, and OSF's reorganization
This week we attended SOCAP23 in San Francisco — a conference bringing together investors, entrepreneurs, and social impact leaders to discuss how progress can be accelerated against the world’s toughest challenges through market-based solutions — and have some key takeaways for the global development community.

In addition to taking a look at the International Finance Corporation’s push to invest in the creative industries and providing an update on OSF’s reorganization, we also released an exclusive story on the European Union’s “Global Gateway” project. Critics say the initiative is focused on Europe’s own interest in securing supplies of renewable energy and critical raw materials, as well as on preventing China from laying claim to the world’s digital infrastructure.

To dig into these stories and others, Devex President and Editor-in-Chief Raj Kumar sits down with Managing Editor Anna Gawel and Senior Reporter Adva Saldinger for the latest episode of the podcast series.

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32 min
October 23, 2023 Special episode: Debt crisis in the MENA region
Public debt across the Middle East and North Africa — or MENA — region is soaring. While debt vulnerability is a global phenomenon, recent data shows four MENA economies — Egypt, Tunisia, Bahrain, Jordan — are among the emerging markets most vulnerable to a debt crisis.

In a special podcast episode, Devex President and Editor-in-Chief Raj Kumar is joined by Niranjan Sarangi, a senior economic affairs officer in the shared economic prosperity cluster at the U.N. Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia, and Sarah Saadoun, a senior researcher working on poverty and inequality at Human Rights Watch, for an in-depth discussion on the politics of economic reform in the MENA region.

Speaking on the sidelines of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund annual meetings in Marrakech, Morocco, they discuss what’s behind the current debt situation, how it’s affecting ordinary people’s lives, the impact of IFI programs on the expansion of social protection systems, and the region’s evolving climate finance needs.

This episode of This Week in Global Development is sponsored by Open Society Foundations.
49 min
October 20, 2023 What comes after the World Bank summit, and EU countries overreport aid
In the latest episode of Devex’s podcast, we reflect on the World Bank annual meetings that took place in Marrakech, Morocco last week, and what reforms need to be made if the institution is to drive meaningful transformation in global development.

We discuss our exclusive story on the United States’ decision to freeze the delivery of thousands of metric tons of wheat to hungry Yemenis in order to pressure Houthi rebels to ensure the neediest get fed. We also dig into a study by AidWatch, which found that more than 22% of official development assistance declared by European Union countries last year was not real aid spent abroad, with spending going to hosting foreign students and Ukrainian refugees.

We also reported that the pharmaceutical industry is unhappy with the latest pandemic treaty draft due to the inclusion of intellectual property waivers in the text. Meanwhile, access advocates say the language around equity and intellectual property remains vague and weak on enforcement.

For this week’s episode, Devex President & Editor-in-Chief Raj Kumar sits down with Devex Managing Editor Anna Gawel and Global Nation co-founder Jonathan Glennie to discuss the top stories from the past week.

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35 min
October 13, 2023 Key takeaways from the World Bank Annual Meetings
This week Devex reporters traveled to Marrakech, Morocco, to report on the highly anticipated World Bank-International Monetary Fund annual meetings.

Ajay Banga, the World Bank’s new president, used the gathering as an opportunity to outline his priorities for the institution, which includes reforming the bank so that it can lend more efficiently and making it more impact-focused so that it will be in a better shape to request a capital increase.

While Banga called for increased collaboration between multilateral development banks and vowed to increase the financial institution’s lending capacity, civil society groups have been calling for it to release free money to countries already struggling with debt repayments.

For the latest episode of the podcast, Devex President and Editor-in-Chief Raj Kumar sits down with Managing Editor Anna Gawel, who’s in Marrakech, to discuss what we learned from the annual meetings and what it means for the global development sector.

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30 min
October 06, 2023 The US government avoids a shutdown, and the World Bank's big plan
Even though the U.S. government avoided a shutdown this week, serious concerns remain over whether lawmakers will be able to hammer out a federal budget for fiscal 2024 within the next 45 days, leaving the future funding of several development programs up in the air.

This week we also had an exclusive story on the $1.5 billion Saving Lives and Livelihoods Initiative, which was temporarily halted amid an audit due to several issues, including the failure to pay workers in Nigeria for months worth of work and missing contracts and receipts. The three-year program, launched by the Mastercard Foundation and Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention in 2021, is the largest public health partnership between a global philanthropic organization and an African institution and has employed more than 22,000 people.

Ahead of the World Bank annual meetings in Marrakech, Morocco, next week, we reported that the institution’s president, Ajay Banga, hopes to make available up to $125 billion additional lending over the next 10 years through reforms.

To dig into these stories, as well as to gain an update on PEPFAR’s potential reauthorization, tune in to the latest episode of the podcast. Devex President & EiC Raj Kumar sits down with Senior Reporter Adva Saldinger, as well as Olusoji Adeyi, the president of Resilient Health Systems and senior associate at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, to discuss the most important news this week.

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38 min
September 28, 2023 How the white savior complex impacts global development
Following the release of “White Savior,” a new HBO documentary series following Renee Bach, a white missionary who tasked herself with managing a clinic in Uganda with no medical training, we reflect on the idea of of white savior complex and its implications for the global development sector.

As well as discussing how to make localization initiatives more effective, we also delve into a Devex article that examines how the U.S. Agency for International Development can reach its localization goal of giving 25% of eligible funds to local partners by 2025.

For this episode of the podcast, Devex President and Editor-in-Chief Raj Kumar is joined by global strategy and development leader Nasra Ismail to dig into these stories and how they are intertwined when we consider how global development professionals can make meaningful change in lower-income countries.

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34 min
September 26, 2023 What did we learn at the 78th UN General Assembly?
Last week saw the annual gathering of heads of state, thought leaders, civil society members, development professionals, and other industry personalities in New York City for the 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly.

In addition to our very own Devex @ UNGA 78 summit that happened on the sidelines of the main event, we reported on the most important news affecting the drive to reach the Sustainable Development Goals as well as the United States push to reduce the U.N.’s role in the reform of the international financial system.

For this special episode of the podcast, Devex President and Editor-in-Chief Raj Kumar sits down with our resident U.N. expert Colum Lynch to discuss what we learned at UNGA 78, including the most surprising moments and the key outcomes from the summit.

You can also check out our special UNGA 78 roundup newsletter.

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29 min
September 18, 2023 Special episode: Rebuilding trust in the UN system
In this special sponsored episode of This Week in Global Development, Devex President and Editor-in-Chief Raj Kumar sits down with Natalie Samarasinghe, head of global advocacy at Open Society Foundations, and Richard Gowan, U.N. Director at Crisis Group, to discuss to what’s likely to come out of this year’s United Nations General Assembly, the trust deficit facing the multilateral system, and whether this global gathering is even fit for purpose anymore.

They also delve into the results of Open Society Foundations’ new poll on global public opinion towards human rights and democracy.

This episode of This Week in Global Development is sponsored by Open Society Foundations.
40 min
September 15, 2023 Key issues to watch at the 78th UN General Assembly
With the high-level general debate of the 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly taking place next week, leaders from around the world will be gathering in New York City to talk through some of the biggest issues facing societies around the world, including how we can best meet the Sustainable Development Goals and tackle the climate crisis.

For this week we have a special episode of the podcast, in which Devex Managing Editor Anna Gawel sits down with our Global Reporter Colum Lynch.

From whether Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s visit will overshadow other global issues to increasing poverty rates around the world, they discuss the key talking points ahead of the summit.

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You can also register to attend in person or online Devex @ UNGA 78, our very own summit taking place on the sidelines of the most important discussions.
30 min

About This Week in Global Development

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Dive into the week's most critical global development news with the This Week in Global Development podcast.

In each episode, hosts Adva Saldinger, David Ainsworth, and Rumbi Chakamba…