From donor to partner – what to expect from the Global Partnerships Conference

At a moment of fiscal constraint and growing geopolitical fragmentation, international development is being reshaped in real time. This episode of Think Change explores the shift from aid to investment and the growing emphasis on partnerships across governments, development finance institutions, philanthropy, and the private sector. Recorded alongside the Global Partnerships Conference, we bring together four of the conference chairs to answer the following question: are we seeing a meaningful transformation in how global development cooperation works, or a repackaging of existing approaches under tighter constraints? With the UK increasingly positioning itself as “thinking like an investor, not a donor,” the conversation also explores what this shift signals politically – about the future direction of development policy, the role of the state, and who ultimately shapes development priorities. From mobilising private capital at scale to aligning climate and development goals in frontier markets, the conversation unpacks what it will take to deliver impact in an era defined as much by constraint as by ambition. Guests Sara Pantuliano (host) , Chief Executive, ODI Global Kate Hampton, CEO, The Children's Investment Fund Foundation Leslie Maasdorp, CEO, British International Investment (BII) Melinda Bohannon, Director General – Global Issues, UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office Maropene Ramokgopa, Minister in the Presidency responsible for Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation of the Republic of South Africa Related resources Centre for Private Finance in Development (ODI Global) What’s really “in it” for private investors in emerging markets? (Think Change podcast, ODI Global) Five ways European governments can support greater private capital mobilisation to low- and middle-income countries (Expert comment, ODI Global)

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From donor to partner – what to expect from the Global Partnerships Conference is an episode from ODI podcasts by ODI podcasts.

This episode is 41:29 long.

This episode was published on May 14, 2026.

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