This Week in Global Development

In this episode of Global Progress in the AI Era, Nick Allardice explains how GiveDirectly is using AI to deliver faster, more direct aid — from anticipatory cash transfers in Bangladesh to near real-time responses in crisis zones. The conversation explores what it takes to move from theory to practice, and how AI is forcing new trade-offs around speed, targeting, and dignity in humanitarian respo...

While HIV infections and AIDS-related deaths are declining globally, the Eastern Europe and Central Asia region, or EECA, tells a different story. It is now home to one of the world’s fastest-growing HIV epidemics, with over 2.1 million people living with the virus . Alarmingly, about 20% are unaware of their status, and nearly half remain without treatment. Since 2010, EECA has become the only re...

A tale of two continents is unfolding in the global development landscape as Latin America embraces a surge of private investment while Africa grapples with severe economic aftershocks from geopolitical conflict in the Middle East.  At the recent Inter-American Development Bank meetings, an atmosphere of intense optimism prevailed, fueled by the region's 63% renewable energy matrix and the attenda...

As AI models scale globally, social enterprises are increasingly working with frontier AI labs to test, adapt, and improve the technology in local contexts. This episode explores how those partnerships could determine whether AI reinforces existing inequalities — or helps close them.

This week, we are reporting from the Commission on the Status of Women — the world’s largest gathering on gender equality, which is taking place at the United Nations headquarters in New York. We discuss the key talking points at the conference, including what’s at stake amid a global regression in women’s rights, as well as the conversations taking place on the sidelines of the main summit.   Sta...

Too many “AI for good” pilots fail before reaching the people who need them most. To solve this scaling crisis, Kanika Bahl, the CEO of Evidence Action, is stepping down from the helm of the organization to lead a new effort called the AI Access Initiative. Operating as an “AI-native NGO,” the initiative will bridge the gap between frontier tech labs and global development actors.  Rather than fun...

This week, we are reporting from the European Investment Bank’s annual meetings in Luxembourg to better understand the direction in which the institution is heading. We dig into the agenda as Europe continues to balance defense and development spending. EIB President Nadia Calviño says the bank is “carrying the flag of development.” This comes as the bank pledged $1 billion for electrification in...

This week on Devex’s Global Progress in the AI Era podcast, we are breaking down the critical shift from simply accessing artificial intelligence to owning the infrastructure it runs on, with a specific focus on how the global south can finance AI infrastructure on its own terms. From the push for "minimum viable compute" to the deployment of micro data centers, we explore how nations are moving a...

Last week, we were at the India AI Impact Summit 2026 to find out how this revolutionary technology can transform global development. From AI regulation to the push for democratized access, we’re breaking down our key takeaways from the summit and exploring how artificial intelligence can maximize impact in the sector. On the topic of the AI Impact Summit, Bill Gates pulled out hours before delive...

Artificial intelligence is moving at breakneck speed, but can global governance keep up? In this episode of our new podcast series, Global progress in the AI era, Devex’s Catherine Cheney sits down with Amandeep Singh Gill, the U.N. secretary-general’s envoy on technology. Together, they unpack the fast-evolving — and often fragmented — architecture of AI regulation. The core question: Can today’s...

We examine the latest developments surrounding the African Continental Free Trade Area , or AfCFTA, which served as a focal point of the recent African Union Summit . The initiative continues its phased reduction of continental tariffs to bolster intra-African trade and industrialization. The development of strategic resource corridors to anchor critical mineral supply chains was also a cornerston...

This week we take a look at a new report from the Center for Global Development , which found that aid cuts have largely failed to spark reform in sub-Saharan Africa. The caveat, though, is that the authors analyzed national budget data from June 2025 — shortly after the U.S. announced its drastic cuts, meaning the analysis doesn’t reflect efforts that have been taken since then.  But still, it ch...

In this episode of the This Week in Global Development podcast, Business Editor David Ainsworth is joined by Managing Editor Anna Gowel and Deputy Managing Editor Fiona Zublin to discuss the launch of Devex’s Power 50 list. The conversation highlights how the development landscape is shifting away from traditional power structures toward influential "movers and shakers" behind the scenes, includin...

In this special edition of our podcast, This week in global development, we explore the critical yet often overlooked issue of oral health with guests Anil Soni, CEO of the WHO Foundation , and Esha Gupta, Head of Public Health and Social Impact at Colgate-Palmolive. Despite oral diseases affecting 3.7 billion people and being among the most common noncommunicable diseases, oral health has histori...

This week we report on the U.S. State Department ’s radical expansion of the Mexico City Policy , also known as the global gag rule, which blocks U.S. federal funding to international nongovernmental organizations that provide or inform about abortion. Beyond the traditional reproductive health restrictions, three sweeping new rules now tether all U.S. foreign assistance to strict prohibitions on...

In this special edition of This Week in Global Development , recorded at Davos, we explore a fundamental shift in the development landscape: the move from funding gaps to impact-driven results. As global economic constraints and fragmented cooperation redefine the sector, the conversation is no longer just about how much money can be mobilized, but how leadership and innovation can scale impact in...

This week, we are tuning in from Davos as we report from the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum . With Trump’s attendance and foreign policy dominating the summit, we discuss the most important updates for the global development community, including the Gates Foundation and OpenAI’s $50 million commitment to support AI-infused health programs across Africa . We examine the year’s defining...

This week, U.S. lawmakers reached a deal on a $50 billion compromise foreign assistance bill . Even though the agreement implements a 16% reduction from what was approved by Congress last year, it defies President Donald Trump’s requested 47.7% gutting of the budget. Beyond the numbers, the bill signals a fundamental overhaul of how foreign assistance accounts are managed and structured. From its...

In the first episode of the year, we look ahead to what we expect to happen in 2026 in global development. From more foreign aid cuts by traditional Western donors to a more transactional approach to development, we discuss what trends are set to shape the future of the sector.  We identify the key players driving this transition from aid to investment, as well as contemplate the conditions necess...

In our final episode of 2025, we discuss a tumultuous year in U.S. foreign assistance. It has not always been clear who is calling the shots in the new world of U.S. development funding, but we break down who we believe are the key players in this moment of uncertainty . We are also seeing that the State Department is rebuilding its workforce , and across the world, positions are opening up to fil...

The U.S. State Department has signed a bilateral agreement with Kenya , its first in its ongoing efforts to overhaul how it provides global health assistance. The United States said it will invest up to $1.6 billion over five years in the East African country, with the Kenyan government cofinancing the agreement with $850 million. We take a look at how this controversial new approach could play ou...

We dig into the details of a new report published by UNAIDS , which found that donor funding cuts to the HIV response could lead to an additional 3.9 million new infections over the next five years, even if treatment coverage is maintained. The report, published on World AIDS Day 2025, called on governments to uphold human rights and urged funders to dedicate more resources to HIV prevention, incl...

This week, we unpack the major storylines emerging from the G20 Summit — the first ever held on African soil — where South Africa used its presidency to spotlight debt, inequality, climate, and critical minerals, even as the United States chose not to attend. With global development at an inflection point, leaders leaned into questions of how multilateralism must evolve as the global south asserts...

This week, we take a look at the details of the new template for bilateral agreements between the United States and partner governments, which sheds light on the ideas floating around the Trump administration on how it will engage with other countries when it comes to global health. However, experts are raising concerns around its implementation.  In our update from COP30 , we discuss the conferen...

In this special episode of the This Week in Global Development podcast , we dive into a fast-moving and timely question at the intersection of technology and health care: Can artificial intelligence safely support mental health?  Hosted in partnership with PATH , Devex Senior Editor for Special Coverage Catherine Cheney speaks with Bilal Mateen, chief AI officer at PATH, Miranda Wolpert, director...