UNGA79
“If you want to go fast, go alone; if you want to go far, go together.”
This proverb was the rallying cry of many throughout the final week of the 79th UN General Assembly (UNGA79) in New York last month. With a UN report released in June revealing only 17% of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are on track, the tension between addressing the urgency and scale of the need was the focus of many of the conversations on platforms and in cafes throughout the week. I was privileged to join the British Asian Trust’s Chief Executive, Richard Hawkes, and Pakistan Director, Kamyla Marvi, along with leaders and practitioners from across the public and private sectors, in New York to raise the profile of issues we are tackling in South Asia and drive forward collective action to address them.
The week started with a focus on mental health crisis, which affects one in four people, but less than 2% of global health budgets are devoted to mental healthcare. In South Asia, this translates to hundreds of millions of people with a mental health issue, but health budget allocation is well below 2%. Together with Chelsea Clinton, Richard Hawkes at a reception to launch the Coalition for Mental Health Investment and pledged our commitment to this bold and inspiring new collaboration created by the Clinton Global Initiative, Kokoro, McKinsey Health Institute, and the Wellcome Trust.
On day two, we shifted to advocating for transitioning to a more outcomes-based approach to financing education and skills initiatives to fill the annual $97 billion gap in financing for education globally. Sharing learning from the British Asian Trust’s Quality Education India Development Impact Bond and LiftEd Outcomes Fund, Richard joined Karthik Krishnan, CEO of the International Finance Facility for Education (IFFEd), Amel Karboul, Founder and CEO of the Education Outcomes Fund, and Nat Ware, Founder and CEO of Forte, on a panel on Unlocking the Future of Education: Innovative Financing Models for Global Impact, convened by funding partner the Atlassian Foundation.
Building on this event, the British Asian Trust then joined our partner Reliance Foundation for their India Day to talk about how technology is transforming lives. The digital revolution has created opportunities to significantly accelerate inclusive development, especially in the Global South. Through the LiftEd EdTech Accelerator, the British Asian Trust is working to ensure the growth in the EdTech market in India is benefiting all children - supporting 2.5 million children from low-income communities to access education products tailored to their needs.
Finally, we closed the week by co-hosting a panel discussion at the Dasra Philanthropy Forum on Ambitious Innovation and Collaboration with the American India Foundation. We know that South Asia is a sandbox for development sector innovations for the world and has emerged as a thriving hub for innovations in philanthropy in the recent past. Richard moderated a panel comprising Nishant Pandey, CEO of the American India Foundation, Dr Vanita Sharma, Strategic Initiative Advisor for the Reliance Foundation, and Shamina Singh, President of the Mastercard Centre for Inclusive Growth. These innovators and collaborators shared specific examples of their work in innovative financing and unusual multi-sectoral partnerships that drove real impact and change in South Asia.
As I reflect on the events and discussions over the week, I am reminded again of the urgency and scale of the mission, but also the ambition and opportunity evident throughout. From the commitment to drive investment in mental health to innovations in EdTech, there are countless ways we can work together, share resources and risks, catalyse change and innovation, that will drive progress for the communities we serve.
By Ellie Jones
Associate Director Programme Funding, British Asian Trust
