Frank Giustra, the mining executive who donated $131 million to the Clinton Foundation under shady circumstances, has issued a press release defending himself from what her sees as false reports. He addresses several factual errors, but doesn't really provide any evidence to support the claims. As I see it, his arguments fit into two broad […]
Andrew Leonard, who blogs for Salon (free day pass required), commented yesterday on a new economics paper, “Does Digital Divide or Provide?: The Impact of Cell Phones on Grain Markets in Niger”. The article explains that increased access to cell phones in certain communities in Niger has had a powerful impact on grain prices. Giving […]
This video is funny, and funny foreign aid jokes don't come up very often. Just for that it would be worth posting. At risk of taking the joke too seriously, I would like to point out that the US government does not give foreign aid in the way described here (random amount of money sent […]
The US Millenium Challenge Corporation (MCC) and the British Deptarment for International Development (DFID) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to increase their cooperation in Africa. The MOU specifically pertains to Ghana, Malawi, Mozambique, and Tanzania. I didn't check, but I’m willing to bet those are the only African countries where both the MCC […]
CSRwire is a site that covers pretty much everything to do with corporate social responsibility. It tends to take a pro-business slant on the issue, but also contains a lot of useful information. Interested in the CSR profile of Coke vs. Pepsi, CSRwire is a good place to start. They’ve just added a multimedia section […]
Thanks to Tactical Philanthropy for pointing out this Ellison Research study that suggests a majority of Americans do not trust non-profits to spend their money efficiently. Most of us apparently believe non-profits spend too much money on fund-raising and administration. The average American believes that 22.4 cents out of every dollar would be reasonable, but […]
The fiesty WHO malaria chief, Dr. Arata Kochi, thinks that the Gates Foundation's $1.2 billion supporting for malaria research gives them too much influence over the field. He believes that it is now becoming difficult to find non-biased scientists to peer review research, and that the Foundation using its weight to to ensure that research […]
A new IMF Working Paper has found an association between remittances a country receives, and the deterioration of institutional quality in that country. It seems counter intuitive but basically they are saying that if citizens have more non-taxable income, there is less incentive for the government to spend its own resources on those citizens. The […]
Like a lot of non-democratic governments (and some democratic ones as well), the junta that rules Burma likes to keep track of the international NGOs operating in its country. You never know when they’re going to be stirring up an insurrection. This article gives a brief description of the policies they have put in place […]
One of the recurring themes here is that public and private philanthropy have many driving purposes. There probably isn't a better example of this than the US current aid policy in Africa. Not only is aid is the dominant feature of US foreign policy on the continent, but we also see the three major purposes […]
This online Op/Ed by David Dickson originally comes from scidev.net, but I found it on an interesting blog called Gates Keepers. It keeps an unbiased eye on the Gates Foundation, as is worth a read if you have interest in what Gates is up to. The Op/Ed makes a sound argument that the Gates contribution […]
As part of the Slate's special on philanthropy the executive director of Google.org, Larry Brilliant, wrote a very good explanation of the thought process behind Google's philanthropic funding decisions. Because most of this post will be a negative critique of his reasoning, I want to start by saying I appreciated Brilliant's view, and think that […]
Slate published a series on philanthropy today. The cover story is about what they call the “Slate 60”, a list of the 60 largest charitable contribution in the US. It is an annual series with a stated goal of inspiring the wealthy to compete for the top spot. Why 60? I have no idea. Maybe […]
Another Economist article caught my eye this week, it discusses a conditional cash transfer (CCT) program in Brazil, Bolsa Familia (Family Fund). CCT programs give poor families money if they meet certain conditions, usually participation in public health programs or educational sessions. Programs like the one in Brazil have been tried in many Latin American […]
This week's Economist contains two articles that discuss leapfrogging technology – when a society skips a generation in technology. The usual example is the cell phone, which a developing country can adopt without ever having had widespread landlines. Both Economist articles refer to a World Bank report on Global Economic Prospects. Leapfrogging is usually seen […]