India has become exception in economic growth, dynamic philanthropic market: Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation CEO
Jan 27, 2024
By Shalini Bhardwaj
New Delhi [India], January 27 : Mark Suzman, CEO of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, said that India has become an incredible exception in economic growth and dynamic philanthropic market.
In an exclusive interview with ANI, CEO Suzman said, "We have a range of other partners in India as well, and India has become an incredibly dynamic philanthropic market. It's another area that's seen growth. I think the annual growth in philanthropic giving outpaces overall economic growth, which is great to see. We hope that can happen at an even greater scale, because we think it is an incredible model to the world, and it's been very encouraging."
He said that this time, the investment will be twofold. He said, "The focus is twofold. One is essentially announcing our new budget of $8.6 billion, but announcing it in the context of the big, growing global needs. India these days, unfortunately, is an exception in terms of the economic growth and dynamism that is underway and the significant improvements we've been seeing in healthcare and poverty reduction. In fact, many other parts of the world are getting poorer, and have not yet recovered their per capita income to their pre-COVID levels."
"A big part of my letter is a call to action to increase the spending and resources on interventions,
health interventions, AI interventions, and agricultural interventions. It's specifically a call not just
on governments, but also on philanthropists because one group of people that have done comparatively well over the last decade are the world's billionaires," Mark Suzman added.
According to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation website, it works to help all people lead healthy, productive lives, guided by the belief that every life has equal value.
In developing countries, it focuses on improving people's health and giving them the chance to lift themselves out of hunger and extreme poverty.
Based in Seattle, Washington, the foundation is led by CEO Mark Suzman, under the direction of co-chairs Bill Gates and Melinda French Gates and the board of trustees.
