Melinda French Gates reflects on sexism in philanthropy during her time with Bill Gates; says, ‘If I went into a…’

Philanthropist Melinda French Gates has reflected on her experiences with sexism while working alongside her ex-husband, Bill Gates, co-founder of Microsoft. Despite their joint efforts in philanthropy for the past 25 years, Melinda French Gates recounted how meetings would often default to Bill Gates, with others presuming she had less expertise.

In an interview with Vanity Fair, Melinda Gates said, “If I went into a president or prime minister’s office and I was with my ex-husband, they would turn to him first. Unless I interrupted the conversation, they could have just kept going for the whole meeting. I get that he was well-known and did great things in the tech industry, but why would they assume I knew less than him about philanthropy when we had been doing it together for almost 25 years? Why make that false assumption? That, really, was sexism.”

Looking ahead with renewable energy

Looking to the future, French Gates expressed enthusiasm about her upcoming endeavours. “I feel extraordinarily energized about the work ahead. It feels like now is the right time. I never realized that going into my sixth decade, turning 60 could be so exciting. Now, I’m the sole decision-maker about these resources. So that’s just—it’s different than before. Quite honestly, it feels quite good. When I get a meeting now, I know it’s because of me,” she said.

Bill Gates advocates for increased support for Africa

In a related philanthropic update, Bill Gates has called for richer governments to boost their support for African countries. Gates highlighted that recent global aid trends, including substantial funding for the humanitarian response to the war in Ukraine and refugee support, have led to a reduction in resources directed toward Africa, Associated Press reported.

“There’s less money going to Africa at a time when they need it,” Gates told the Associated Press. He emphasized the importance of supporting critical needs such as debt relief, vaccinations, and efforts to combat malnutrition. The report added that his comments came in conjunction with the release of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation's annual Goalkeeper’s report, which evaluates progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals and assesses how well countries have adhered to their 2015 development promises.