The real thing
I just read an interesting post by the always thoughtful Alanna Shaikh on the increasing number of corporations who want to get involved in global health.
It’s well worth reading.
Shaikh, who attended the UN anti-poverty confab in New York City this week, says “It’s an interesting new world of international development and global health.” She noted that the CEO of Coca-Cola announced at the Clinton Global Initiative his leading role in the Partnership for a New Beginning project — aimed at improving relations with the Muslim community worldwide.
Melinda Gates highlighted Coca-Cola in her opening TEDxChange pitch for the Millennium Development Goals earlier this week, mostly to point out that it is possible to build infrastructure that can reach even the poorest people anywhere in the world — at least with a soft drink.
It’s a good thing to get corporations interested in development. The important question Shaikh raises is if the corporate culture will get modified so that it accommodates the development philosophy — or the other way around.
