Everyone – from elected officials and bureaucrats to voters and taxpayers – can learn from the world’s largest charitable foundation about effective development spending. And these lessons are particularly relevant at a time when 56 percent of Europeans believe their governments should focus solely on domestic issues and let recipient countries deal with problems as best they can. 

The progress made towards reducing poverty and improving global health over the last 15 years surpasses that made in the whole history of mankind, explains Joe Cerrell. He outlines the story so far, what drove some of the main achievements, and stresses the importance of Britain’s commitment to overseas development aid.

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation said on Wednesday it would spend $40m – on top of $10m already committed – to support the emergency response to west Africa's Ebola outbreak – the group's largest donation yet to a humanitarian effort. "It became clear to us over the last 7 to 10 days that the pace and scope of the epidemic was increasing significantly," Chris Elias, president of global development for the world's largest charitable foundation, told Associated Press.

Infectious diseases that leave victims with cognitive deficits or malnutrition instead of killing them do not typically elicit fundraising galas or research dollars, especially when the illnesses disproportionately impact the poorest of the poor. But a new coalition of funders is now trying to throw these neglected diseases a financial lifeline.

Citizen-led development is key for empowering individuals and creating transparency and accountability. In the case of U.S. foreign assistance, Oxfam America advocates for it to be led and designed by the people who need it most. For too long, U.S. government development efforts have worked at cross-purposes with the very people who are trying to lead lasting change in poor countries.