The COVID-19 response challenge is changing in lower-income countries, and the U.S. government is shifting its strategy in turn.
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While vaccine supply has been the limiting factor in low- and middle-income countries for the last year or so, U.S. officials say they increasingly see vaccine uptake as the biggest binding constraint to meeting global vaccination targets.
A senior U.S. Agency for International Development official tells Devex, however, that vaccine hesitancy is not really the issue. Instead it’s about getting countries the support they need to deliver on their vaccination targets. “The challenge is not so much one of hesitancy. It's one of accessibility,” according to the official.
In December, USAID Administrator Samantha Power launched the Initiative for Global Vaccine Access with funding left over from last year’s big American Recovery Plan stimulus package. Depending on how budget negotiations go over the next couple weeks, USAID’s plan is to dramatically scale up that initiative.
That means enlisting agencies and programs such as PEPFAR, the Peace Corps, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to get more COVID-19 shots into more arms in sub-Saharan Africa.
“The approach that we're trying to take, particularly with these new resources, is to build off of those platforms, but to also minimize the degree to which we need to cannibalize them,” the senior USAID official says.
COVID-19: US global response shifting from vaccine supply to uptake
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Funding the funders
It’s been a busy week for Facebook co-founders. One announced plans for an innovative grant-making scheme that aims to amplify the work of effective foundations. Another lost almost $30 billion in a single day.
Open Philanthropy, the research and grant-making organization founded by billionaire couple Dustin Moskovitz — Facebook co-founder — and Cari Tuna, is taking an unusual approach with $150 million in funding. Instead of granting the money to organizations of their own choosing, they plan to give it to one or more other foundations, which already have “outstanding” grant-making programs.
“We believe there are some excellent individual programs and whole foundations out there and we want to experiment with giving them more money to allocate rather than trying to copy their approaches,” writes co-CEO Alexander Berger, research fellow Emily Oehlsen, and strategy fellow Chris Smith in a blog post.
Open Philanthropy: A $150M award in new 'Regranting Challenge'
No overdraft fees
The International Monetary Fund’s practice of charging fees to countries that borrow over a certain threshold is under scrutiny, Shabtai Gold reports. In the wake of heavy borrowing to deal with the economic fallout from the pandemic, and as interest rates start to rise, these IMF surcharges risk making it harder for lower-income countries in particular to recover.
“The IMF should not be in the business of making a profit off of countries in dire straits,” write economists Joseph Stiglitz and Kevin Gallagher in a paper on the subject.
Devex Pro on IMF: Should surcharges be ditched? Some economists and lawmakers think so.
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Sense of urgency
U.S. lawmakers in the House of Representatives are jumping on board a legislative effort aimed at pushing philanthropists to donate their money instead of holding it for long periods of time in donor-advised funds.
Stephanie Beasley reports that the proposed legal changes — first introduced in the U.S. Senate — have divided the philanthropic sector. Some argue it could help ensure funds reach those in need, while others say it could dissuade some would-be donors from giving at all.
Philanthropy: Bill to overhaul donor-advised funds introduced in U.S. House
Progress report
The Biden administration’s new strategy to address the root causes of migration from Central America appears to be showing up in funding changes for the region.
Teresa Welsh reports that in 2021, U.S. funding for security efforts in Central America’s Northern Triangle region decreased, while funding for civilian peace building and democratic participation rose significantly.
Experts say the White House’s plan to work more closely with civil society organizations and shift away from the criminalization policies of the previous administration is still a work in progress.
Central America: Hurdles remain for Biden's 'root causes' strategy
Catch up: Our series following faith and development featured a story looking into how projects in the region can pose challenges to USAID’s localization agenda.
In other news
The United Nations is unable to use the money held at a bank in Afghanistan worth around $135 million, which the Taliban-run central bank cannot convert to the national currency. [Reuters]
The World Bank and IMF are urging G-20 creditors to act quickly on their debt service suspension initiative, as low-income countries face $35 billion in payments in 2022. [Bloomberg]
The number of asylum-seekers who died in a Turkish town near its border with Greece has climbed to 19, sparking a war of words between the neighboring countries. [CNN]
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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.
