Melinda French Gates leaves the foundation created with ex-husband Bill Gates
$12.5 billion exit agreement. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundations, a leading US charity, changes its name to the Gates Foundation
2' min read
2' min read
Melinda French Gates will step down as co-president of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the non-profit organisation that she and her ex-husband Bill Gates founded and turned into one of the world's largest philanthropic organisations over the past 20 years. "This is not a decision I made lightly," French Gates wrote on Platform X on Monday. "I am immensely proud of the foundation Bill and I built together and the extraordinary work it is doing to address inequality around the world."
The manager praised the foundation's CEO, Mark Suzman, and the board of directors, which has been significantly expanded after the couple announced their divorce in May 2021. "The time has come to move on to the next chapter of my philanthropy," Melinda French Gates wrote in her statement. Bill Gates' ex-wife already organises some of her philanthropic investments and donations through her own organisation, Pivotal Ventures, which is not a non-profit.
Bill Gates thanked Melinda French Gates for her "fundamental" contribution to the foundation and said: "I am sorry she is leaving, but I am sure she will have a huge impact in her future philanthropic work. The foundation will change its name to the Gates Foundation.
French Gates will receive $12.5 billion as part of the agreement with Bill Gates, who reiterated his intention to engage in future activities focused on women and families. The foundation stated that Gates will provide funds personally, not from the foundation's endowment.
The Gates Foundation is a major funder of the global health that supports important international institutions such as Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, the World Health Organisation and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. It also funds research on a wide range of topics such as child malnutrition and maternal health, polio eradication and malaria treatment and prevention. The foundation has also donated billions to help small farmers adapt to climate change.
