What did you say to the 'giving pledgers', the billionaire donors?
That saving and improving the lives of millions of people does not require much more investment, but rather better choosing the objectives to make it more efficient by analyzing its cost-benefit. And so we have proposed the twelve most effective.
And did they, those from “The Promise to Give”, pay attention to him? What did he propose to you?
They listened to me, because we had been working for some time with experts from the UN and the institutions that defined the Sustainable Development Goals and the governments of poor countries that are trying to achieve them.
In which areas should we invest more?
In tuberculosis, education, maternal and neonatal health, agricultural research and development, nutrition, malaria, digital contracting, legal security of land ownership, chronic diseases, trade, childhood vaccination and qualified migration. I would say that tuberculosis is the most urgent...
Would these investments be so effective?
Combined, they would save 4.2 million lives per year and generate an additional benefit of $1.1 trillion annually. In 2025, the equivalent of the population of Estonia, Swaziland, Djibouti and Guyana would avoid dying.
Does tuberculosis still kill millions?
In 2022, tuberculosis killed more people – 1.4 million – than covid...
But since they were people from poor countries, most of us didn't find out?
Tuberculosis is still the silent killer of the world's poor, although for the rich it is only seen in the opera. It has been curable for more than half a century and with $6.2 billion we would save a million lives every year for decades...
Starting by educating in prevention?
Education, in fact, is the second most profitable investment destination...
But we did know that.
What we have proven is that schooling and the delivery of qualifications are being confused with effective learning.
I'm afraid not only in poor countries.
The Sustainable Development Goal was that “All girls and boys complete primary and secondary education, which must be free, equitable and of quality and produce relevant and effective learning outcomes”...
And what is the error?
Schooling without learning: that we confuse the appearance of teaching with the effective acquisition of knowledge.
How do you intend to avoid it?
We propose investing in structured pedagogy and ensuring its effectiveness. Just as we advise improving healthcare not only with new buildings, but with new approaches: especially in perinatal care.
Do many children still die at birth?
In poor countries, one woman and nine newborns die in pregnancy or childbirth every two minutes.
How to avoid so many neonatal deaths?
With neonatal resuscitation: a mask with a manual pump to introduce air through the mouth. And it only costs 75 dollars. Furthermore, giving micronutrient supplements to pregnant women would generate 24 dollars of benefit for each dollar invested; and childhood vaccination would prevent half a million deaths annually.
What if the child later suffers from malnutrition?
Irrigation?
...Avoid malaria, which is still the curse of Africa, with insecticide-treated mosquito nets. For every dollar invested in them, 48 would be saved in healthcare and quinine.
Wouldn't there be fairgrounds who would keep a few percent commission?
Therefore, we propose investing in electronic contracting systems in countries today ruined by corruption. And opening borders and minds enriches everyone: we have to increase free trade, eliminating tariffs that penalize the poor; and, also, increase qualified migration...
That would cost many votes in Europe.
But it would generate a lot of prosperity for everyone: increasing the entry of migrants with degrees by 10% would generate 20 dollars for each one invested in integrating them. But I'm not just talking about poor countries to rich countries: if Africans opened their borders they would obtain a net benefit of 5.4 billion dollars.
Why is it difficult for us to invest in Africa?
One of the great brakes on this investment is the lack of legal security when you buy a property...
Registries, notaries, notaries public?
Here we take that security for granted, but in sub-Saharan Africa it is not: achieving the same guarantees there would be a gigantic stimulus to growth.
