Impatient Optimists
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
Countries / Central African Republic

Horn of Africa Disaster Didn't Happen Overnight

August 23, 2011 / Andrea Long

Photos and stories from the hunger crisis in The Horn of Africa—a region that includes Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia—have brought to light suffering on an almost unimaginable scale.

Full Blog Post ›

Survival of Women and Newborns in Crisis

May 20, 2011 / Kate Kerber, Ribka Amsalu

Imagine you are eight months pregnant with your third child, with two other young children at home. The ground starts moving violently beneath you and panic sets in. You flee your collapsing home with your children.

Full Blog Post ›


Reader Comments
See All ›Partner Headlines
See All › Last Thought

  • "Our desire to bring every good thing to our children is a force for good throughout the world. It’s what propels societies forward." —Melinda Gates

  • The Global Fund has helped to deliver more than 190 million bed nets to protect families from malaria.

  • "The world faces a clear choice. If we invest relatively small amounts, many more poor farmers will be able to feed their families." —Bill Gates, 2012 Annual Letter

  • "When it come to global health, Bill and I are optimists—but we're impatient optimists. Tremendous progress is being made. But there is still so much we're impatient to see done." —Melinda French Gates

  • In Senegal, 80% of households now have a bed net, helping the number of malaria cases there drop 50% in a single year.

©2013 Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation