NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

Thursday, October 12, 2017

Since President Donald Trump reinstated and expanded the Global Gag Rule (GGR) early this year, advocates and funders who work on global health and development have been scrambling to respond. The new version of this anti-abortion maneuver not only puts U.S. family planning funding at risk but also jeopardizes an estimated $9.5 billion in U.S. global health aid.

In March 2017, nearly 60 nations along with private funders and philanthropists from around the world attended what is being widely described as a “hastily convened” one-day She Decides family planning conference in Brussels, Belgium. She Decides is a global family planning initiative launched by Dutch minister for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation, Lilianne Ploumen, in response to the GGR reinstatement. The goal of the campaign is to fill the nearly $600 million funding gap that will likely be caused by the GGR.

One of the biggest donations came from Chris Hohn, managing partner and portfolio manager of the Children’s Investment Fund (TCI) a London-based hedge fund, and co-founder of the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF). Hohn donated $10 million to She Decides to promote and support family planning services and support the sexual and reproductive health rights of women and girls around the world. CIFF is managing the donation and allocating funds to organizations affected by GGR.

Photo courtesy of UK DfID.