Devex Pro Weekender: Meet the big guns, and what’s next for European aid

Big news: Pro Week 2024 is on its way! This is a week dedicated to you, our Pro members, and we’ll be filling it to the brim with exclusive events, deep dive articles, special reports, and more to show our appreciation for your support. First up — on July 22, we’re delighted to be hosting one of the U.S.’s top foreign policy experts, Ben Rhodes, for unique insights into what the U.S. presidential election means for global development. Sign up now to join us, and keep an eye out for more announcements to come! To mark Pro Week, we’re also offering $100 off an annual Pro membership, for a limited time only. If you have a friend or colleague who might benefit from Devex Pro, please spread the word. Coming up: We’ve got two brilliant events for you this week! The first, in London and online, aims to crack the code on climate finance. The second, in Washington, D.C., and online, explores the future of the U.S. Development Finance Corporation, including a chat with its CEO Scott Nathan. Also in today’s edition: Change is afoot in European aid, a new global health research institute is announced, and a puppet wants to give you ethical guidance. Bits and pieces Oh, snap. The recent European Parliament elections sparked political chaos. A swing to the far-right in France saw the aid-friendly President Emmanuel Macron — who has been a key advocate for MDB reform — call a snap national election. Meanwhile, Belgian prime minister and former development chief Alexander de Croo resigned, following a right-wing surge in his country. So there are a lot of changes afoot that could affect European aid, and often not for the better. The provisional results of the European elections themselves also show a general rightward swing, with the center-right European People’s Party consolidating its position as the Parliament’s biggest grouping. The far-right Identity and Democracy Party did gain seats but there wasn’t quite the far-right victory that some had feared. EU heads of state will be meeting this week to nominate candidates for the bloc’s top jobs but it will be some time before we know the cohort of new commissioners — including who’ll be running the international partnerships (aka development) portfolio, and what they’ll be calling it this time round. Translation needed. Get ready for a new global health institute! Fondation Botnar, the Basel-based philanthropy focused on youth health and well-being around the world, is launching the Botnar Institute of Immune Engineering. Also to be based in Basel with a $1 billion endowment, the nonprofit research institute will focus on developing “computational tools and immune-based translational solutions for the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of disease” — if anyone’s able to translate that, let us know — and improving the health of young people in low- and middle-income countries will be a priority. It’ll get a new purpose-built research facility in 2027 but until then it will be hosted by the university ETH Zurich. What an honor. King Charles III of England bestowed honors on hundreds of people last week with a list of awardees to mark his official birthday (which is not actually his birthday, but that’s a story for another time). Among those recognized for their work in the global development and humanitarian aid worlds were Andrew Steer, president and CEO of the Bezos Earth Fund; Tariq Ahmad — aka Baron Ahmad of Wimbledon — who is currently serving as the British government’s special representative for preventing sexual violence in conflict; Keith Palmer, chair of Enterprise for Development; and Melita Gordon, professor of global health in the Malawi-Liverpool Wellcome Trust Clinical Research Programme. Helen Stephenson, CEO of the U.K. charity regulatory, also received an honor. Puppeteering. Ever had a puppet for a colleague? Well, now you can — and a wise one too. Wellcome has created a character called Connie to provide ethical guidance to staff. As a “representation of our individual consciences, [Connie] will bring our Code of Ethics to life, pose and support staff in answering important questions and dilemmas, and spark courageous conversations — empowering our staff to be thoughtful in doing the right thing in moments that matter,” according to a LinkedIn post from Wellcome’s Associate General Counsel Fraser Simpson. Connie will send out monthly “ethical dilemmas” for staff to discuss and has her own email address for staff to send in ethical queries. “Puppets can transcend social boundaries, be both playful and serious, and listen, speak and be humane without the baggage of actually being human,” Simpson wrote. “Innovating involves bravery and taking risks. We’re living our values and we’re looking forward to seeing how this approach works!” Royally cool. Want to know how to make global health cool? Bring in Prince Harry. My colleague Sara Jerving mentioned the royal in a post on X about the WHO Foundation — which, though important and interesting, has never been viral material. Yet at the time of writing, the post has had more than 100,000 views. So there’s a tip for your global health messaging — and, of course, you should read the story itself, which explores where the foundation’s at four years after its launch, exclusively for Pro members. ✉️ Do you have insights into any of this week’s bits and pieces? Let me know by replying to this email. Moving on Rodney Ferguson, former CEO of development nonprofit Winrock International, has joined The Clearing as chief operating officer. The Clearing is a leadership and management consultancy that works with federal and commercial clients. The African Development Bank has appointed Max Magor Ndiaye as senior director of syndications, the Africa Investment Forum and client solutions. He was previously director of the bank’s syndication and client solutions department. Did we miss one? Is there a change on the horizon? Let us know at devexpro@devex.com. Up next SDG report. The Sustainable Development Goals report will be launched this week, offering an update on the state of progress. This year’s report is apparently due to highlight progress in areas such as reducing child mortality and improving access to energy, but suggests the world is falling behind in some big areas such as climate change and peace and security. June 27. OPEC Fund Development Forum. The development fund of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries will hold its annual forum in Vienna this week, alongside the inauguration of its new HQ. The theme will be “Driving Resilience & Equity,” and there’ll also be a special session dedicated to its work with the private sector. The fund committed $1.7 billion to projects last year and works across a broad range of areas — including climate change, which has obviously raised some eyebrows given the source of the funding. June 25. Carnegie Africa Forum. Expect ambassadors galore at the inaugural Carnegie Africa Forum, which will focus on the continent’s role in international cooperation — from the energy transition to changing geopolitical dynamics and the future of artificial intelligence. June 27. Freedom and Prosperity. Finally, the Atlantic Council is publishing its 2024 Freedom and Prosperity Indexes this week, analyzing how global conflict, democratic backsliding, and rising authoritarianism are impacting the world. There’ll be a launch event, in Washington, D.C., and online, on June 25.