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What in the World
Your questions answered — from vaccines to vacations in North Korea
What in the World
Jul 31, 2024

Dearest gentle listener: It’s our first birthday! To celebrate one year of our What in the World podcast, we asked you what burning questions you had — and we turned to the BBC’s global network of experts to get the answers. In this episode, you’ll hear…

Digital health editor Michelle Roberts on how vaccines train the body’s immune system.

Seoul correspondent Jean Mackenzie on what tourists in North Korea can actually do.

Correspondent Samira Hussain on how the electoral college decides the U.S. presidential election.

Climate and environment researcher Mark Poynting on the role of hydrogen in the green energy transition.

Plus Mora from the What in the World answers Alex’s question, “How do fringes happen?” We said no question was too stupid.

Instagram: @bbcwhatintheworld WhatsApp: +44 0330 12 33 22 6 Email: [email protected] Presenter: Hannah Gelbart Producers: Alex Rhodes and William Lee Adams Editor: Julia Ross-Roy

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Feb 5, 2025
USAID: Can the world live without it?

The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) is under fire. It is the world’s biggest donor and spends billions of dollars a year, funding programmes around the world, like fighting malaria in Bangladesh, clearing unexploded landmines in Cambodia and Laos and providing medical supplies in Sudan.

But President Trump says it is run by “radical lunatics” and he and billionaire Elon Musk, who’s got the job of trying to slash American government spending, want to shut it down. They have paused almost all international spending for 90 days and issued “stop work” orders to their staff. BBC journalist Nathalia Jimenez tells us what USAID does - and why the Trump administration wants to close it.

A large proportion of USAID funding goes towards healthcare and HIV medication in sub-Saharan Africa. Makuochi Okafor, the BBC’s Africa Health correspondent tells us what impact closing USAID could have in this region.

Anselm Gibbs, a BBC reporter based in Trinidad and Tobago, tells us about programmes USAID funds in the Caribbean. And Hilde Deman from Search for Common Ground, an international NGO that uses USAID funding in countries affected by violent conflict, talks about the impact to their work in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Instagram: @bbcwhatintheworld Email: [email protected] WhatsApp: +44 0330 12 33 22 6 Presenter: William Lee Adams Producers: Benita Barden and Julia Ross-Roy Editor: Rosanna La Falce


13min 08sec




Your questions answered — from vaccines to vacations in North Korea

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