NGO Consultant

NGO Consultant
Odisha NGO Consultancy Services

Thursday, May 7, 2015

Et Tu, Bill?

Considering the Government's resolve to close the gates on private foreign aid, it shouldn't come as a surprise that Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) is also under scrutiny. However, as the MHA officers are at pains to point out, this scrutiny is not as piercing as with the others. What is the reason for this review of an agency which focuses primarily on health?

According to one source, this is due to a discrepancy in the amount reported by one of the recipients, Public Health Foundation of India. Foreign Contribution in India is reported on the basis of actual receipt, whereas donor agencies typically report the full amount on making a commitment (accrual basis).

Another source links this to the BMGF's support to various drug companies for clinical trials, including death of seven tribal girls in 2009, allegedly during trials conducted by PATH, a grant recipient.

If true, then this is another illustration of how a donor agency could face difficulties due to actions of a grantee.

References:

1. 'After Greenpeace and Ford Foundation, Home Ministry shifts focus to Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation', Economic Times, 6-May-15. http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/after-greenpeace-and-ford-foundation-home-ministry-shifts-focus-to-bill-and-melinda-gates-foundation/articleshow/47169086.cms?from=mdr

2. 'Now, Gates Foundation is Under Govt Scanner', Ahmedabad Mirror, 6-May-15. http://www.ahmedabadmirror.com/news/india/Now-Gates-Foundation-is-under-govt-scanner/articleshow/47167477.cms

3. Julius Caesar may never have uttered the famous phrase ' Et tu, Brute?', attributed to him by William Shakespeare. But the phrase lives on. -Ed.