David Ainsworth

David Ainsworth @daveainsworth4

David Ainsworth is business editor at Devex, where he writes about finance and funding issues for development institutions. He was previously a senior writer and editor for magazines specializing in nonprofits in the U.K. and worked as a policy and communications specialist in the nonprofit sector for a number of years. His team specializes in understanding reports and data and what it teaches us about how development functions.

Latest Articles

Money Matters: Which multilateral agencies got the most funding?

Money Matters: Which multilateral agencies got the most funding?

2 days ago // Devex Money Matters

We analyzed donor funding for multilaterals before the aid cuts of the past year. Plus, an in-depth interview with the U.S. DFC investment chief, and the impact of lost funding in Zimbabwe.

Devex Pro Insider: A tough week for Gates, a better week for French Gates

Devex Pro Insider: A tough week for Gates, a better week for French Gates

2 days ago // Devex Pro Insider

As Bill Gates becomes more engulfed in the Jeffrey Epstein scandal, Melinda French Gates is featured on Forbes' World’s Most Powerful Women list. Plus, previews of the African Union Summit and Munich Security Conference.

Money Matters: The Gates Foundation spent $4.5B last year — who got it?

Money Matters: The Gates Foundation spent $4.5B last year — who got it?

16 days ago // Devex Money Matters

An analysis of the Gates Foundation’s top grantees in 2025. Plus, a new U.S. State Department strategy, and the risk of “imminent financial collapse” at the U.N.

Money Matters: The US budget — a bigger cut than it seems?

Money Matters: The US budget — a bigger cut than it seems?

23 days ago // Devex Money Matters

How much does the development sector actually get in the $50 billion U.S. foreign assistance bill? Plus, the U.S. says it won’t pay its past dues to WHO, and the legal battles over USAID.

Devex Pro Insider: Nerves in Davos, one year on from the fall of USAID

Devex Pro Insider: Nerves in Davos, one year on from the fall of USAID

24 days ago // Devex Pro Insider

Highlights from Davos, and the latest career moves in the global development sector.

Money Matters: Where did MacKenzie Scott spend her billions?

Money Matters: Where did MacKenzie Scott spend her billions?

about 1 month ago // Devex Money Matters

Plus, the battle over U.N. cuts, and the search for the next NextGen.

How humanitarian funding collapsed in 2025

How humanitarian funding collapsed in 2025

about 2 months ago // Humanitarian

In 2025, humanitarian funding fell to the lowest level in a decade, even as need continued to remain at elevated levels. The most senior humanitarian official at the United Nations called it "a time of brutality, impunity and indifference." A report published earlier this month charts how the collapse unfolded.

Devex Pro Insider: Goodbye and good riddance, 2025

Devex Pro Insider: Goodbye and good riddance, 2025

about 2 months ago // Devex Pro Insider

A look back at the year 2025 in global development. Plus, Save the Children won’t bid for local funds, and a sector at war over the Oxfam GB CEO.

Money Matters: How much has the US State Dept spent on aid in 2025?

Money Matters: How much has the US State Dept spent on aid in 2025?

2 months ago // Devex Money Matters

$32.5 billion was disbursed in fiscal year 2025, but with little going to new projects initiated since the transfer of aid to the State Department. Plus, the World Bank job cuts — and so does Germany.

Money Matters: New data on the world’s biggest development philanthropies

Money Matters: New data on the world’s biggest development philanthropies

3 months ago // Devex Money Matters

Which countries did the Gates Foundation and other philanthropies fund the most? Plus, the U.S. makes a big bet on drone delivery, and what’s up at The Agency Fund.