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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
World
Tracy McVeigh

‘The strain is the worst of my lifetime’: how Bill Gates is staying optimistic

Bill Gates gestures as he gives a speech
Since the Covid pandemic, Bill Gates and Melinda French Gates have put another $20bn into their foundation, bringing the total endowment to $70bn. Photograph: Kazuhiro Nogi/AFP/Getty

The figures are bad, progress has stalled and all the trends that had been building hope in the world becoming a fairer place are showing sharp about-turns. Yet Bill Gates, who has poured billions of his own dollars into eradicating poverty, remains “optimistic”.

“It would be awful to turn away just because we’re getting bad grades due to unexpected setbacks,” he told the Guardian in an exclusive interview ahead of Tuesday’s publication of the annual Goalkeepers Report from the foundation he co-chairs.

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