Philanthropic foundations have made important contributions to development, particularly in agriculture, family planning and infectious diseases control. The most effective interventions have been long-term investments that were based on vision and sound scientific understanding, and were well integrated with local capacities. Foundations’ total expenditure on developmental activities is now about $3 billion annually, mostly from large U.S. foundations. Foundations are increasingly involved in public-private partnerships whose activities range from crop and disease research to improving insfrastructure, especially water supply. They have also evolved innovative approaches to building democratic life in developing countries. Better information exchange with official aid agencies and appropriate fiscal encouragement of their activity can help maximise foundations’ future development contributions...