In numbers: Private vs. public aid sources

There is evidence that prominent private foundations are expanding their global development role. The chart above begins to shed light on the extent of this giving in the context of the yearly foreign aid contributions of the top 10 OECD-DAC countries from 2003-2009.

In 2007, 2008, and 2009 (the last three years that the OECD tracked net private grants to the developing world), private grants increased considerably, amounting to about one fifth of total ODA from the top 10 OECD-DAC countries. In the face of U.S. government aid spending reductions and European aid austerity measures, it will be interesting to see if the balance continues to shift and how organizations such as the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation influence the global development agenda.