The OECD DAC, which tracks official development assistance (ODA) spending, has released the latest global aid figures. Due to a lag in reporting and analysis, these only cover through the end of 2019, but they paint a grim picture for what development assistance looked like in the lead up to the global pandemic. While overall global aid totalled US$151.7 billion, aid fell far short of commitments, and what’s more, development assistance to Africa and the most vulnerable countries declined. The top...
A roundup of the latest news, stats, and analysis of COVID-19’s impact in Africa. Read on for more about which country has reached 1 million cases and Tanzania’s continued pandemic silence. But first, how to prevent a vaccine apartheid. Top news Catastrophic moral failure: UNAIDS Director Winnie Byanyima recently called out the emerging ‘“Vaccine Apartheid” as rich countries hoard vaccine supplies. WHO Director General Tedros said “We are on the brink of a catastrophic moral failure.” The Economic Intelligence Unit predicts...
Throughout this pandemic, we have been awed by the incredible acts of humanity taking place to protect those most in need and to help flatten the curve. People around the world are banding together in solidarity to do their parts. In 2020, we put an open call out to our ONE Supporters and asked them to share their stories of solidarity with us. We were blown away by the responses, and we decided to bring some of those stories to...
Fighting a pandemic and its economic aftershocks requires enormous amounts of money. In higher income countries, governments have stepped forward with trillions in economic stimulus packages. But the majority of developing countries do not have the money to cover the full costs of this pandemic. Suspending debt service payments is one of the fastest, most effective means of freeing up cash in developing country budgets. The Debt Service Suspension Initiative (DSSI), a G20 agreement to suspend debt service payments for...
Less than a year since the COVID-19 pandemic started, AstraZeneca, Pfizer/BioNTech, and Moderna have created safe and effective vaccines against the virus, and some nations have begun vaccinating their citizens. Although this is great news and a major scientific achievement, the work isn’t done, and we’re seeing some signs that this accomplishment could be undermined by a failure to get the vaccine everywhere. The pandemic won’t end with just a vaccine, but when there is global access to it and...
Amadou Mahtar Ba, a member of the Africa Policy Advisory Board of ONE, is sharing why debt relief is crucial for Africa to recover from COVID-19. The economic and health costs to Africa as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic are unprecedented by any measure. With the death toll rising above 50,000 and more than 2 million confirmed infections so far, the continent has many reasons to be worried. So far, COVID-19 lockdowns have triggered the first continent-wide recession in 25...
This year around the world, activists have stepped up to do their part to make the world a better, safer place for everyone, no matter where they’re from. Now, after a long year and tireless work from activists, it’s time to start preparing for the year ahead. Whether you’re a seasoned activist or if you’re just beginning your activism journey, it’s time to start thinking about how to affect change in 2021. Here are six resolutions for activists to consider...
This year, in the face of a global pandemic, the fight against global poverty and inequality became tougher, but more important than ever. Our tireless activists fought for fair deals on debt, vaccine access, aid budgets, and more. Hundreds of thousands of global activists signed petitions, completed surveys, tweeted at or sent emails to politicians, attended briefing calls, shared messages of solidarity, or danced to our anthem “Stand Together.” Here’s a quick look at some of what ONE and our activists...
Ending the COVID-19 pandemic and minimising its impact largely depends on finding effective ways to treat and immunise against the disease. Here’s the good news: so far, billions in funding has been mobilised in record time to fast-track research and development on COVID-19. Plus, there are over 500 treatment and vaccine candidates in development, with some COVID-19 vaccine campaigns already underway. But the bad news: this is only half the battle. A historic effort Delivering medication and vaccines at the speed and scale...
The best kinds of gifts are the ones that save lives! That’s why the (RED) Shopathon is back for the sixth year, offering up tons of ways to make your shopping count this holiday season. As a division of ONE, (RED)’s goal is to end AIDS by utilizing the power of people and companies. (RED) contributes profits of sales of (RED)-branded products and experiences to the Global Fund, which aims to end AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria as epidemics. As COVID-19...