Russia’s war on Ukraine is a defining moment for the democracy-building movement. The Open Society Foundations is at the center of that struggle — and its founder, 91-year-old George Soros, isn’t sure we’re going to survive it.
Today we’re also looking at the European Commission’s debate over aid conditionality, and reconsidering the 70% global COVID-19 vaccination target.
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“The [Russian] invasion may have been the beginning of the Third World War,” Soros told attendees at his annual Davos dinner last week. But OSF and other organizations in the democracy promotion business have been battling authoritarianism for decades — and it’s not clear whether they’re winning. The latest tally from Freedom House shows democracy declining in 60 countries last year.
My colleague Stephanie Beasley has an inside look at OSF’s work on the front lines of the democracy crisis in Ukraine.
“If democracy is on trial in this crisis, democracy’s answer has to be that it’s a system that works for everybody,” OSF President Mark Malloch-Brown tells her.
Stephanie looks into the International Renaissance Foundation, OSF’s grant-making foundation in Ukraine, which has spent about $230 million on pro-democracy activities in the last decade. It has now pivoted to join a “civil frontline” in the war with Russia.
Stephanie spoke to IRF Executive Director Oleksandr Sushko via video chat just two weeks after Russia invaded Ukraine and after OSF had advised IRF staffers that it would be prudent to flee the country. He was adamant about staying.
“My position is that we have to be in Ukraine as long as possible,” Sushko told her at the time.
“This is very important — that people like us are not evacuating without ultimate threat to our lives — because this is a very essential signal to the rest of the society that we are here, that we are continuing to coordinate this essential work, which is needed for people here.”
Read: Why the Ukraine crisis is a defining moment for George Soros’ OSF
Purchasing power
For UNICEF’s operations in the Horn of Africa, the war in Ukraine has come with a $12 million price tag. That’s how much the relief organization says it will have to pay in additional costs to purchase therapy for malnourished kids in the region. The price of ready-to-use therapeutic food — or RUTF — has already increased about $6 to $7 per carton, and the shortage of formula milk in high-income countries could drive prices up even higher, Sara Jerving reports.
Read: Ukraine crisis costs UNICEF $12M extra in Horn of Africa drought
Explainer: Why the food crisis might get worse before anything gets better
A textbook case
A budget battle is brewing over whether part of the European Commission’s funding for Palestinian public services should be conditioned on educational reforms — including changes to textbooks that some European commissioners have linked to antisemitism.
My colleague Vince Chadwick reports that France is pushing back on funding conditionality — according to diplomatic correspondence that he obtained — while Hungary’s EU commissioner has tried to lead the charge for textbook changes.
“Last year, a commission-funded study on Palestinian textbooks that was conducted by the Georg-Eckert-Institut described a ‘complex picture,’ finding that although the books adhere to UNESCO standards, they also ‘express a narrative of resistance within the context of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and … display an antagonism towards Israel,’” Vince writes.
Meanwhile, Ambassador Omar Awadallah, assistant minister to the United Nations and other specialized agencies at Palestine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, tells Vince that conditioning funding is tantamount to discrimination.
Read: France takes aim at European Commission for Palestinian aid delay (Pro)
+ Pro subscribers can also read Vince's Q&A with Philippe Lazzarini, head of the U.N. agency for Palestine refugees. Donors delaying contributions and a "revolving fund" model were among the things discussed. Access the article by starting your 15-day free trial of Devex Pro.
Moving the goal posts
“I think what's important is to focus on country targets first. If you're at 5% or 9% vaccine coverage, 70% is a long way away.”
— Ted Chaiban, global lead coordinator, COVID-19 Vaccine Delivery PartnershipAs of May 31, only 58 countries and territories have hit the global goal of vaccinating 70% of their population against COVID-19 — a target that was supposed to be met by the end of June 2022.
COVID-19: Some LICs make vaccination progress, but far from 70% target
Graphic by: Nature
Meanwhile, scientists working with the World Health Organization on COVID-19 have revised their excess mortality estimates for Germany — down by 37% — and Sweden — up by 19%.
ICYMI: The pushback against WHO's imminent COVID-19 excess deaths estimate
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In other news
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s push for his country’s name change at the U.N. has been successful, as the nation will now be recognized by its Turkish name: Türkiye. [The New York Times]
Despite calls of walkout from NGOs, North Korea has taken over the presidency of the U.N.-backed Conference on Disarmament. [CNN]
Asylum-seekers and migrants have staged a hunger strike at a detention center in the United Kingdom to protest their deportation to Rwanda. [BBC]
Forty-four percent of the world’s land surface would need to be under conservation protection to curb loss of biodiversity, according to a new analysis. [The Guardian]
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About the author
Michael Igoe@AlterIgoe
Michael Igoe is a Senior Reporter with Devex, based in Washington, D.C. He covers U.S. foreign aid, global health, climate change, and development finance. Prior to joining Devex, Michael researched water management and climate change adaptation in post-Soviet Central Asia, where he also wrote for EurasiaNet. Michael earned his bachelor's degree from Bowdoin College, where he majored in Russian, and his master’s degree from the University of Montana, where he studied international conservation and development.
