NEW YORK, May 8: Bill Gates is making a bold decision to share his vast fortune with the world. The billionaire businessman and philanthropist announced in an exclusive interview with CBS Mornings on Thursday that he plans to give away nearly all of his wealth, amounting to $200 billion, over the next 20 years through the Gates Foundation. His goal is to support initiatives that will save and improve lives globally.

"By deciding to spend all this money in the next 20 years, we can get a lot more done," Gates said in a taped interview from last week, just before unveiling the initiative. He believes the contributions will save "tens of millions of lives."

This decision wasn’t made lightly. Gates explained in a letter posted online Thursday that his inspiration stemmed from a famous quote by Andrew Carnegie in his 1889 essay, "The Gospel of Wealth," which argues, "the man who dies thus rich dies disgraced." Gates noted that his current net worth of $108 billion will decrease by 99% over the next two decades.

"People will say a lot of things about me when I die, but I am determined that 'he died rich' will not be one of them. There are too many urgent problems to solve for me to hold onto resources that could be used to help people," Gates wrote.

As a result, the Gates Foundation, which was originally planned to shut down decades after Gates and his ex-wife Melinda French Gates’ deaths, will now close in 2045.

The Gates Foundation, celebrating its 25th anniversary this year, has already spent $100 billion in efforts to reduce global childhood mortality by funding medical innovations. Gates highlighted that he has witnessed the impact of vaccines on diseases like pneumonia and diarrhea, which solidified his resolve to "double down" on these initiatives.

The foundation will continue to focus on three main goals: preventing maternal and child deaths from avoidable causes, eradicating deadly infectious diseases, and fostering economic prosperity through improved education.

However, Gates expressed concern that progress could be hindered as both the U.S. and European countries scale back foreign aid and humanitarian funding. According to a UNICEF report, approximately 4.8 million children died before reaching the age of 5 in 2023. Gates warned that without significant government assistance, the number of childhood deaths could rise.

"We should be going from 5 million children dying a year over the next five years to 4 million. And now with these cuts, if they’re not reversed, we will go to over 6 million dying. So, instead of going down, we will go back up," Gates said.

Gates also shared that he has been in discussions with former President Donald Trump, having had a "great discussion" about the foundation’s programs, including efforts related to HIV prevention and polio, over dinner at Mar-a-Lago in December. He expressed concern that some of these programs had since been cut, and hopes to work with the president and Congress to restore them.

Under the Trump administration, the U.S. has significantly reduced its foreign aid efforts. In 2023, the administration introduced plans to scale back funding for humanitarian causes, and senior officials indicated that the proposed budget for fiscal year 2026 would include even further cuts to foreign aid, focusing only on "targeted" support in U.S. interests.

While the Gates Foundation has been instrumental in promoting global health initiatives, it is not large enough to replace the vast sums of money the U.S. government allocates for foreign aid. In 2024 alone, the U.S. government disbursed nearly $72 billion in foreign assistance, four times more than the Gates Foundation.

"You always want more money going into these things where you're saving lives for a few thousand dollars. And I will be an advocate for that," Gates said, praising former President George W. Bush’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, which he believes should be maintained.

At 69, Gates said this decision marks the beginning of the "last chapter" of his career. Although he wishes he had more time to see the impact of his philanthropy, he acknowledged that he has entered the final stage of his life and is focused on ensuring his wealth is well spent.

"I should make sure that it’s well spent. And now this is the last stage of all that," Gates told CBS Mornings.

When asked if he would miss his fortune, Gates laughed. "No, I won’t. I hope I’m still alive when we finish the 20 years, but I will save a little bit to be able to buy hamburgers as much as I need," he quipped.

With this commitment, Gates has set a new course for his legacy, focusing on solving some of the world’s most pressing problems and leaving behind a significant philanthropic impact.