The Global Reach of the Gates Foundation

Manhica, Mozambique
Before the Gateses got involved, malaria — a disease that contributes to 1 million deaths a year — garnered little attention. "We gave a small grant at first, like $30 million," Bill Gates recalls, "and everybody said, 'Wow! That is the greatest increase in nongovernmental spending in the history of malaria research!' And I thought, Oh, you are kidding." Since then, the foundation has committed $1.6 billion to fighting the disease. Despite the presence of better bed nets, drugs, insecticides and vaccine candidates, the parasite is notoriously difficult to kill, because it can change shape and hide throughout the body. The young patient above is being weighed during a vaccine trial at a research center in Mozambique.

• World Economic Forum: Davos 2010
• The Good Samaritans