-Excerpt- Another vital distinction in the aid world is the difference between bilateral and multilateral donors. Bilateral donors are almost exclusively sovereign governments that have international development assistance programmes, ministries or departments. This of course does not strictly adhere to the literal meaning of bilateral – and large foundations, such as the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation or the Aga Khan Foundation, often have programmes that are larger in total size than the aid programmes of whole countries. Small, developing countries must therefore treat such foundations as “bilateral”.
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