One man's donation – $49,600,000,000
Warren Buffett's gift to friend Bill Gates' charity vehicle

NEW YORK — In what is being called the largest philanthropic gift in history, the world's second-richest man has decided to donate about US$31 billion ($49.6 billion) of his personal fortune to a charity run by the wealthiest man on the planet.
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The extraordinary gesture by investment guru Warren Buffett will double the size of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, which is already the biggest charitable vehicle in the world. It will also increase spending on eradicating poverty and disease, to which the Gates Foundation, currently worth US$30 billion, has dedicated itself.
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Mr Buffett had always intended to give a large part of his US$44 billion fortune to charity but had previously said it would be parcelled out after his death. He had hoped that his wife Susie would oversee the project. But Mrs Buffett died two years back at the age of 72 and Mr Buffett changed his plans and decided to divert the bulk of his wealth to the foundation run by his friend Bill Gates.
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Mr Gates has already decided to wean himself away from the day-to-day work at Microsoft to focus on the foundation. The global charity sector has never had it so good.
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Already, the Gates Foundation provides 90 per cent of the world's budget to eradicate polio. It has pumped in almost US$6 billion over the years into developing and delivering vaccines for diseases like malaria, tuberculosis and acute diarrhoea, which kill millions of children in developing countries every year.
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To put things in perspective, the United Nations' Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco) had a budget of US$610 million last year, while the Gates Foundation gave away twice as much — US$1.36 billion — as grant payments. Now, it will have even more resources.
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"The amount that Buffett is giving is record-breaking," said Ms Stacy Palmer, editor of the Chronicle of Philanthropy. "The fact that he is giving it to the Gateses is unprecedented."
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Reason: Most philanthropists give to causes in their own name. Mr Buffett, 75, is giving the bulk of his wealth to a foundation run by Mr Gates, 50.
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"He's handing it over to someone with whom he's had a close relationship, but who is 25 years his junior and who might be around to make sure it is used properly," added Indiana University's Gene Tempel.
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The two men have been friends since 1991, often travelling together and playing online bridge games. They also routinely seek out each other's advice on business and personal matters. In starting to divest his wealth, Mr Buffett took his cue from Mr Gates, who plans to give away 95 per cent of his US$50 billion fortune before he dies.
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Mr Buffett will divert his money in annual instalments. Explaining why he had picked his friend as his vehicle for charity, he said: "What can be more logical, in whatever you want done, than finding someone better equipped than you are, to do it.
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"Who wouldn't select Tiger Woods to take his place in a high-stakes golf game? That's how I feel about this decision about my money."
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The Gateses said they were "awed" by Mr Buffett's decision.
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Mr Buffett was also donating another US$6 billion to other charities, including some run by his own three children.
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"Neither Susie nor I ever thought we should pass huge amounts of money to our children," Mr Buffett told Fortune magazine. "But I would argue that when your kids have all the advantages anyway in terms of how they grow up and the opportunities they have for education ... I would say it's neither right nor rational to be flooding them with money." — AGENCIES

Source: todayonline.com  27-Jun-2006

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Warren Edward Buffett (born August 30, 1930) is an American investor and businessman. Nicknamed the "Oracle of Omaha" or the "Sage of Omaha", Buffett has amassed an enormous fortune from astute investments, particularly through his company Berkshire Hathaway, in which he holds a greater than 38% stake. With an estimated current net worth of around US$42 billion, he is ranked by Forbes as the second-richest person in the world, behind only Microsoft chairman Bill Gates. In June 2006, he made the commitment to give away 85% of his fortune, most of which would be going to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. This is the largest act ever of charitable giving in United States history.

Despite his immense wealth, Buffett is famous for his unpretentious and frugal lifestyle. He continues to live in the same house in Omaha he bought in 1958 for $31,500, although he also owns a summer house in Laguna Beach, California. His annual salary from Berkshire Hathaway of $100,000is nominal by the standards of senior executive remuneration in the United States.

Warren Buffett in 1994
Born:	August 30, 1930 Omaha, Nebraska
Occupation:	Chief executive officer
Annual salary:	$100,000 USD (2005)[1]
Net worth:	US$42 billion[2]
Website:	berkshirehathaway.com

Bill Gates
Born: October 28, 1955 Seattle, Washington Occupation: Chairman, Microsoft Corporation Annual salary: US$1 million[1] Net worth: 7.5% to US$50.0 billion (2006)[2] Spouse: Melinda Gates Website: microsoft.com/billgates William Henry "Bill" Gates III (born October 28, 1955) is the co-founder, chairman, former chief software architect, and former CEO of Microsoft Corporation. He is also the founder of Corbis, a digital image archiving company. The Forbes international rich list has ranked him as the world's richest person for the last twelve years straight. In 1999, Gates' wealth briefly surpassed $100 billion making him America's first centibillionaire. According to the Forbes 2004 magazine, Bill Gates's net worth was approximately $46.6 billion. When family wealth is considered, his family ranks second behind the Walton family.

Born:	October 28, 1955 Seattle, Washington
Occupation:	Chairman, Microsoft Corporation
Annual salary:	US$1 million[1]
Net worth:	7.5% to US$50.0 billion (2006)[2]
Spouse:	Melinda Gates
Website:	microsoft.com/billgates