Thursday Apr 25, 2024
Thursday Apr 25, 2024
Monday, 5 June 2023 03:46 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
Key representatives of the globally-renowned philanthropy organisation Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF), including Southeast Asia Lead for Policy and Government Relations and India Country Director Hari Menon were in Sri Lanka last week, committing support towards rebuilding the country. Leading global donor agencies have also extended their support towards BMGF to bring hope and positivity to Sri Lankan citizens through digitally-led initiatives. The BMFG delegation included Jamal Khetran, Ruchika Chugh Sachdeva, Siddarth Chaturvedi and Leonie Vierck.
The delegation met with President Ranil Wickremesinghe, Chief of Staff to President Sagala Rathnayake, embassies, key ministry officials and several prominent industry leaders.
Assistance towards enabling the digital Sri Lanka vision
The Gates Foundation and Sri Lankan Government have been in discussions since 2021 to explore collaboration opportunities in areas of mutual interest. These conversations followed the letter sent in April 2021 to Bill Gates by the Ministry of Technology, which shared Sri Lanka’s digital transformation vision. By then, the Ministry had already formed a committee to bring down global tech CSR initiatives to the country, with a vision to further enhance and accelerate the digital Sri Lanka initiative.
Based on multiple conversations, with direct feedback coming from President Wickremesinghe, the Government and BMGF teams identified five concrete areas: agriculture, nutrition, financial inclusion, policy discussion and climate change. In agriculture, BMGF is supporting and aiming to formulate an Inclusive Digital Agriculture Transformation (IDAT) blueprint for Sri Lanka while in nutrition, BMFG has partnered with the World Food Program (WFP) to introduce rice fortification in chosen districts as a pilot project. The target impact is roughly around 265,000 school children which will reach over 1500 schools under this program.
Furthermore, The Gates Foundation will be working closely with the Government to leverage the strength, deep expertise and experience of all its partners involved in the financial inclusion space such as the ID4D Group of the World Bank, Modular Open Source Identity Platform (MOSIP) and the Alan Turing Institute to support Sri Lanka in their Digital Identity Implementation. BMGF is a co-founder of MOSIP. The Foundation will also be discussing how it can partner with the Government to support its climate change agenda and policy advocacy initiatives.
During his visit, Hari Menon and his team met with President Ranil Wickremesinghe. They had discussions around the Government’s vision and goals for digital transformation to understand its high-level priorities for agriculture, nutrition and financial inclusion. This was to ensure that the partnership is aligned with the Government’s priorities and Gates Foundation capabilities. While sharing his views on the importance of policy advocacy and climate change, President Wickremesinghe also extended an invitation to Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Co-Chair Bill Gates to visit Sri Lanka.
The delegation met with the Chief of Staff to the President and Senior Advisor to the President on National Security Sagala Rathnayaka along with key officials from seven ministries (agriculture, fisheries, plantations, irrigation, livestock, planning and land) to discuss the overall programmes between BMFG and the Government of Sri Lanka. They also met with the US Embassy and the Indian High Commission to ensure that the Foundation is supporting all Government-to-Citizen initiatives at their best capacity. Additionally, the delegation will meet with key international NGO representatives and the donor community at a networking session to exchange ideas and explore collaborations to achieve the country’s goals.
Commenting on BMGF’s continuous support, Chief of Staff to the President Sagala Rathnayaka, “It is heart-warming to see that Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation reaffirming its long-term commitment to Sri Lanka and to working directly with us to support solutions in health, agriculture, nutrition and other critical areas. As a Government, we are working at all levels to ensure that the healthcare, agri and financial needs of Sri Lankans are being facilitated promptly through a robust digitalisation framework. Furthermore, the President’s Office is actively coming forward to own and drive policy-driven programmes across the country. In such a background, the support we are receiving from the Foundation to strengthen those efforts is commendable.”
Role of BMGF
The private sector is developing some of the most promising and innovative solutions to today’s global problems. Unfortunately, markets don’t always work well for the poor, as companies have little incentive to develop products for people who can’t afford them. Therefore, the Gates Foundation partners with entrepreneurs, companies, and other organisations to create incentives that harness the power of private enterprises to create change for those who need it most. In connection with its investments, companies agree to use the investment proceeds to support specific foundation programmatic strategies.
The Bills & Melinda Gates Foundation focuses on issues that are the biggest barriers that prevent people from making the most of their lives. The Foundation understands that every investment is unique, and the BMGF team approaches each opportunity with the right tools to achieve long-term, measurable success. They leverage a suite of tools, including direct equity investments, fund investments, loans, credit enhancements, and volume guarantees. For each issue they work on, the organisation funds innovative ideas that could help remove barriers. The key program strategies of the Foundation include gender equality, global development, global growth and opportunity, global health and global policy and advocacy.
“At Connect to Care, we firmly believe that positive change is driven by collaborative efforts and shared responsibility. We recognise the immense potential that lies in connecting a diverse range of stakeholders—including the public and private sectors—with the passion and resources of organisations such as The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. By partnering with these foundations, we can harness their knowledge and experience to develop sustainable, high-impact initiatives that make a meaningful difference in the lives of individuals and communities In Sri Lanka. Together, we can create a powerful alliance that ignites nationwide social transformation,” said Connect to Care Chairman and Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Consultant Chandita Samaranayake.
