GATES VISITS IDE INDIA
Philanthropist takes first look at IDE's work in the field
PUNE, INDIA – Bill Gates has made his first visit to an IDE project site, as part of a learning tour of Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation-funded projects in India. Traveling with his father – William Gates Sr. – and two sisters, Gates met with senior IDE staff, toured a drip irrigation manufacturer in Pune and visited farmers who have purchased IDE technology.
Bill Gates (from left), sister Kristi, father Bill Sr. and sister Libby listen as IDE India director Amitabha Sadangi describes IDE's work.
Arranging travel for a person of Gates’ global stature is not easy. For security and logistical reasons, preparations were made with a high level of secrecy and it is likely that the dollar-a-day farmers who had the opportunity to meet Mr. Gates had no idea that they were speaking with the world’s wealthiest man.
While it can be hard to gauge reactions in such a tightly scripted encounter, it was clear that the visitors had carefully studied the background materials, says IDE CEO Al Doerksen. “We gave them some information packets ahead of time,” he says, “and it was obvious that they had read them with some interest. At the sites, they were asking some specific questions about what we had given them.”
The visitors took a genuine interest in the small drip irrigation manufacturing operation that they visited and also engaged with IDE’s approach to development. “Bill Sr. asked me what role there is for philanthropy if we are so focused on using business as the driver for development,” says Doerksen. “It’s a very good, valid question. I told him that, while we don’t believe in directly subsidizing the production and sale of irrigation and other products, we do use donor funds to establish new supply chains by funding research and development and up-front marketing to promote new affordable technologies.”
The Gates visit is a follow-up to the Foundation’s investments in IDE: $27 million to IDE India and $13.5 million for projects in Nepal, Myanmar (Burma), Ethiopia and Zambia.