Ankur Vora, Bill Gates’ top strategy adviser at his foundation, gave a behind-the-scenes look at how the Gates Foundation tackles the world’s toughest challenges — from child mortality to poverty and global health.
Describing his role as "the coolest job on the planet," Vora spoke to Devex Editor-in-Chief Raj Kumar during a Devex event on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly, and emphasized the importance of strategizing, measuring progress, and course-correcting to meet the foundation’s ambitious goals.
Central to his work is addressing challenges related to maternal and child mortality, especially in the aftermath of setbacks caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Gates Foundation “focuses on surviving, thriving, lives and livelihoods,” Vora explained, highlighting that it works to ensure mothers and babies don’t die from preventable causes.
About the author
Helen Murphy
Helen is an award-winning journalist and Senior Editor at Devex, where she edits coverage on global development in the Americas. Based in Colombia, she previously covered war, politics, financial markets, and general news for Reuters, where she headed the bureau, and for Bloomberg in Colombia and Argentina, where she witnessed the financial meltdown. She started her career in London as a reporter for Euromoney Publications before moving to Hong Kong to work for a daily newspaper.
