Billionaire philanthropist Bill Gates has announced his plan to donate nearly all of his $200 billion fortune, leaving only 1 percent for himself as he winds down the operations of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
In a post on his personal blog, Bill Gates Notes, the Microsoft co-founder shared that the foundation, a leading global charity, will cease operations by the end of 2045.
According to a chart provided in the blog post, Bill Gates intends to give away 99 percent of his wealth by that time, retaining only around $1.6 billion for himself and his family.
“People will say a lot of things about me when I die, but I am determined that ‘he died rich’ will not be one of them.
“There are too many urgent problems to solve for me to hold onto resources that could be used to help people,” he said.
He added, “That is why I have decided to give my money back to society much faster than I had originally planned. I will give away virtually all my wealth through the Gates Foundation over the next 20 years to the cause of saving and improving lives around the world. And on December 31, 2045, the foundation will close its doors permanently.”
Established in 2000 with his former wife Melinda French Gates, the foundation has invested more than $100 billion in initiatives related to global health, education, and poverty reduction, contributing to vaccine development, medical research, and humanitarian aid efforts worldwide.
He also notes a shift from the original plan.
“This is a change from our original plans. When Melinda and I started the Gates Foundation in 2000, we included a clause in the foundation’s very first charter: The organisation would sunset several decades after our deaths. A few years ago, I began to rethink that approach.
“More recently, with the input from our board, I now believe we can achieve the foundation’s goals on a shorter timeline, especially if we double down on key investments and provide more certainty to our partners,” Bill Gates stated.
Daily Mail reports that the remaining one per cent of his fortune may ultimately go to his three adult children: Phoebe, Rory and Jennifer.
Outlining the foundation’s achievements, Bill Gates said, “I am deeply proud of what we have accomplished in our first 25 years.
“We were central to the creation of Gavi and the Global Fund, both of which transformed the way the world procures and delivers lifesaving tools like vaccines and anti-retrovirals. Together, these two groups have saved more than 80 million lives so far. Along with Rotary International, we have been a key partner in reviving the effort to eradicate polio.
“We supported the creation of a new vaccine for rotavirus that has helped reduce the number of children who die from diarrhea each year by 75 percent. Every step of the way, we brought together other foundations, non-profits, governments, multilateral agencies, and the private sector as partners to solve big problems—as we will continue to do for the next twenty years.”
Despite decades of impact, the Gates Foundation has drawn criticism from some who say Gates holds too much sway over global health funding decisions.
But, in an interview with the Associated Press on Thursday, he remains unapologetic, saying, like any private citizen, he can choose how to spend the money he earns
“I think 20 years is the right balance between giving as much as we can to make progress on these things and giving people a lot of notice that now this money will be gone,” Bill Gates said.
