Reflecting on 10 Years at the Gates Foundation
If you had told me 10 years ago, when I took a job at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, that I would still be there today, I would have been skeptical. Yet, I am still at the foundation and excited to stay, which maybe is a lesson about how experience can prepare you in unexpected ways for wonderful opportunities (and challenges) you never anticipated.
I began my career as a journalist in my native South Africa during the latter years of apartheid. Among other things, I covered courts for the Johannesburg Star, getting an up-close look at the mechanics of injustice under that horrendous system of racial separation and oppression. Later as a correspondent for the Financial Times, I reported on the run-up to the election of Nelson Mandela as president. I had the opportunity to meet and interview Mandela several times — a true highlight.
As much as I loved journalism and its capacity to shine a light on inequity, I began to feel that shining a light is not enough. The prospect of helping bring about real change is what led me to go to work at the United Nations, as policy director in the UN Development Program and later as an advisor to the Secretary General. It was a great experience that gave me perspective on how to work effectively with governments and policymakers to try to solve complex, global problems.
While at the UN, I began hearing about the Gates Foundation and its unusual role in bringing together governments, business and civil society to tackle some of the big challenges standing in the way of a better life for the world’s poorest people. When my time at the UN came to an end, the foundation felt like a natural next step.
I was a little nervous, though, because the foundation’s culture has always been rooted in scientific and technical expertise. I, on the other hand, am a policy wonk and very much a generalist. Unsure I would fit in, I thought I would stay a few years, contribute what I could, and move on.
My qualms dissipated quickly, especially once I met the foundation’s co-chairs. Bill was a little intimidating at first, but soon I realized that he and Melinda both want to have a rich, fact-based dialogue on any issue before they decide what to do. That sounds simple, but it’s rare, and it makes the foundation a more dynamic and impactful place.
Today I lead the foundation’s efforts to build strategic relationships to increase awareness, action, and resources devoted to global development and health. My role reflects Bill and Melinda’s belief that smart policymaking and advocacy, as well as science and technology, are key to making the world a better place.
It’s true. Public will combined with technical resources can produce amazing results. A prime example is the success of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals, which I had the privilege of helping develop and implement, and which contributed to an unprecedented era of progress in world health and wellbeing. Child mortality has been reduced by half since 1990. Maternal mortality is down almost as much. In little more than a decade, deaths from HIV, TB, and malaria have decreased by 40 percent.
Continuing such progress is central to our missions at the foundation, and we’re in a unique position because the foundation is recognized as offering deep expertise on the issues we care about, from education in the U.S. to global health and development, with no political agenda beyond helping those most in need. Our ability to help foster public-private partnerships and gather support was demonstrated again recently at Davos with the launch of an innovative coalition to combat future epidemics.
All of which is why I’m still passionate about my work after 10 years. As the global political landscape changes in the months and years ahead — with issues like migration and security coming to the fore — we at the foundation will continue to advocate for the coalitions and innovative approaches to development that represent our best hope of ensuring a healthy, secure world for people everywhere.
