The foundation is also investing $40 million to help several African manufacturers produce new messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccines on the continent
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia | THE INDEPENDENT | Bill Gates, co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, announced plans to allocate the majority of his estimated $200 billion fortune over the next two decades to enhance health and education services across Africa.
Speaking at the African Union headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia on June 2, Gates emphasized the transformative potential of investing in these sectors to foster prosperity throughout the continent.
“I recently made a commitment that my wealth will be given away over the next 20 years. The majority of that funding will be spent on helping you address challenges here in Africa,” Gates said, addressing an audience of over 12,000 government officials, diplomats, health workers, development partners, and youth leaders.
The Gates Foundation’s initiatives will focus on three primary goals: ending preventable deaths of mothers and babies, eradicating infectious diseases among future generations, and lifting millions out of poverty. The foundation plans to conclude its operations by 2045, after deploying virtually all of Gates’ fortune toward these causes.
Gates highlighted the critical role of African leadership and innovation in driving the continent’s health and economic future. He cited examples from countries like Ethiopia, Rwanda, Nigeria, and Zambia, where bold leadership has harnessed innovation to expand frontline health services, reduce child mortality, and deploy advanced tools against diseases like malaria and HIV.
Emphasizing the importance of primary healthcare, Gates stated, “Investing in primary healthcare has the greatest impact on health and wellbeing.”
He underscored the need for maternal health and nutrition, noting that ensuring a mother’s health before and during pregnancy, along with good nutrition for children in their early years, can significantly improve outcomes.
Gates also spoke about the transformative potential of artificial intelligence (AI) in healthcare. He praised Africa’s young innovators for embracing AI to solve local problems, drawing parallels to the continent’s mobile banking revolution.
“Africa largely skipped traditional banking and now you have a chance, as you build your next generation healthcare systems, to think about how AI is built into that,” he said.
Investment in AI in Africa
In support of this vision, the Gates Foundation announced a $30 million investment to fund a new AI platform in Africa. This platform aims to provide African scientists and innovators with the technical and operational support needed to develop scalable health and development solutions.
Additionally, the foundation is investing $40 million to help several African manufacturers produce new messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccines on the continent. This initiative seeks to improve vaccine equity and empower low- and middle-income countries to develop high-quality, life-saving vaccines at scale.
Over the last two decades, the Gates Foundation has worked alongside African partners to save lives, develop vaccines, and strengthen systems. It has helped catalyze more than 100 innovations and contributed to saving more than 80 million lives through Gavi and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria.
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