Bill Gates, a name we’re all familiar with, took the truck loads of money he made off personal computers and is now investing it into things that actually matter. His goal was to get a PC on every desk, and for the most part he’s done that in countries that are fairly well off. Now he wants to get rid of malaria, improve literacy, and all kind of awesome stuff that make your critical decision of whether or not to buy an iPad seem downright fucking trivial.
First world problems aside, what’s up with Haiti? Do you even remember Haiti? Sure the televisions are all BP oil spill this, and BP oil spill that, but Haiti is still in ruins after the massive earthquake that hit in January. A problem that many Haitians are now facing is how to move their money around. Few people have bank accounts, and the quake broke the already pitiful amount of ATMs that were around, so why not learn a trick or two from countries such as Kenya and South Africa that use mobile phones as a means to handle currency?
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, together with U.S. Agency for International Development, announced that they’re pouring $10 million into the country to get mobile banking off the ground. “Out of the ruins of Haiti’s tragic earthquake, there is an unprecedented opportunity to improve the lives of millions of Haitians and unlock the country’s economic potential through mobile money,” said Mark Suzman, acting president of the Global Development Program at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, in a statement. “Making financial services widely available to the poorest families in the developing world can help break the cycle of poverty by giving them a safe place to save, guard against risks, build assets, and provide opportunities for the next generation.”
[Via: C|Net]