DGHI receives $20 million grant from Gates Foundation

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has given the Duke Global Health Institute a $20 million grant to support the program's educational initiatives and combat worldwide health challenges.

$10 million of the grant will be used to directly support DGHI, but the other $10 million will be used as part of a fundraising challenge to match funds by other donors. For every dollar given as part of the challenge, one dollar from the $10 million will be used to match it, making the potential overall impact of the grant $30 million.

“We’re deeply grateful for this generous grant from the Bill & Melinda GatesFoundation, which will enable Duke to generate new knowledge needed to reduce health disparities—as well as expand learning opportunities for students at Duke,” President Richard Brodhead said in a Duke News release.

DGHI has several programs for undergraduates, master's candidates and medical residents that support more than 400 students, approximately 300 of which are undergraduates aiming to get either a major or minor in global health. One of the main goals of the grant is to increase support of faculty pursuing interdisciplinary research and increase financial aid, particularly for graduate fellowships and international students.

Other areas of focus are increasing the number of hands-on opportunities for students worldwide and bolstering partnerships with organizations in areas that DGHI prioritizes such as Haiti, Kenya, Tanzania, Sri Lanka and South Africa. Currently DGHI faculty are working with global institutions on more than 300 projects in 54 countries.

“I’m excited that our support can help to increase the visibility of the institute as well as raise the capacity of the global health sector,” Melinda Gates, Trinity '86, Fuqua '87 and co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, said in the release.

Several DGHI projects are addressing access to healthcare, substance abuse, HIV/AIDS and cancer, including many in underserved parts of North Carolina. The rapid spread of Ebola and MERS was cited in the release as a reason for the increased interest in the global health sector, so new initiatives through DGHI could address those and other epidemics as well.

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is the largest private foundation in the world, with an endowment of more than $42 billion, and has long supported the University's various endeavors. In 2007, in conjunction with the Charlotte-based Duke Endowment, it established a $30 million gift to launch DukeEngage, which is one of the University’s most popular programs. The program provides opportunities for undergraduates to volunteer in individual and group projects in the United States and internationally.