Country ownership has become one of the most debated issues in the world of global aid and development. But what does country ownership mean in practical terms to donors, development partners, and country governments? Since 2007, the Ministerial Leadership Initiative for Global Health (MLI), a program of Aspen Global Health and Development, developed and implemented an approach that translates the concept of country ownership into reality.
On January 12th, MLI brought together a prestigious group of ministry leaders from MLI partner countries and development leaders representing donors and implementing partners for a roundtable discussion. This frank and informed conversation revolved around the growing movement toward country ownership of programs and its implications for the future of development practice and aid effectiveness. The “Advancing Country Ownership for Greater Results” roundtable was chaired by the Hon. Mary Robinson and Dr. Francis Omaswa.

At the roundtable, MLI also realeased The MLI Model for Advancing Country Ownership.
A blog series about the roundtable is available on MLI’s Leading Global Health blog: Voices on Ownership: Minister Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus
Voices on Ownership: Development Leaders
Voices on Ownership: US government officials
Wisman on MLI: Skepticism faded, trust grew
The proceedings of the “Advancing Country Ownership for Greater Results” roundtable can be found here.