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Bill Gates

Bill Gates

American businessman and philanthropist

Appears in 3 stories

Born: October 28, 1955 (age 70 years), Seattle, WA
Net worth: 104.2 billion USD (2026)
Organizations founded: Microsoft, Gates Foundation, TerraPower, and more
Children: Phoebe Gates, Jennifer Gates, and Rory John Gates
Spouse: Melinda French Gates (m. 1994–2021)
Education: Harvard College (1973–1975) and Lakeside School (1967–1973)

Notable Quotes

“If we let funding for basic health slip now, we’ll pay for it with millions of preventable child deaths in the decades ahead.”

On polio eradication: “We are closer than ever to ending this disease, but the last mile is the most expensive and the most politically fragile.”

Gates warned that aid cuts risk 'the first rise in child mortality this century' if global health investments are not restored.([ft.com](https://www.ft.com/content/e3f00645-63ee-469e-aa0a-8e82c442519a?utm_source=openai))

Stories

Polio eradication at a funding crossroads

Money Moves

Largest single philanthropic funder of polio eradication

Global donors pledged US$1.9 billion to the Global Polio Eradication Initiative at an Abu Dhabi pledging event on 8 December 2025, temporarily stabilizing a campaign facing a 30% budget cut in 2026 and a multi-year gap. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation pledged US$1.2 billion and Rotary International pledged US$450 million, narrowing the 2022–2029 funding shortfall to roughly US$440 million but leaving a gap. Wild poliovirus transmission has resurged in Afghanistan and Pakistan as vaccine-derived polio sparks outbreaks in under-immunized communities worldwide.

Updated 6 days ago

America first global health compacts: rewiring U.S. health aid

Rule Changes

Prominent critic warning of mortality surge from aid cuts

In 2025 the Trump administration dismantled the post-Cold War global health architecture by withdrawing from the WHO, freezing most foreign aid, and abolishing USAID's development role. Through its 'America First Global Health Strategy,' the administration created bilateral health compacts requiring partner governments to co-finance HIV, TB, malaria, and outbreak response programs and gradually assume full responsibility.

Updated 6 days ago

America quits the WHO after 77 years

Rule Changes

Major global health philanthropist; critical of aid cuts

The United States joined the World Health Organization on June 14, 1948, three years after helping design it. On January 22, 2026, the U.S. became the first country to complete a withdrawal from the agency—walking away from 77 years of leadership in global health. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. jointly announced the withdrawal's completion, citing the WHO's 'failures during the COVID-19 pandemic' and its inability to demonstrate independence from 'inappropriate political influence.' The U.S. departed without paying between $130 million and $278 million in disputed dues, with the administration asserting no obligation to pay prior to exit.

Updated Jan 23