AFRICA WELLNESS FOR PEACE: Improvements in agriculture, health, education and banking thru Gates Foundation

Bill and Melinda Gates have outlined their vision of what the world will look like 15 years from now, and it is confidently optimistic: The number of children dying before the age of 5 will be cut in half; polio, guinea worm and river blindness will be wiped off the face of the Earth; and the African continent will be able to feed itself. For the Gateses, the answer is science. They believe that African farmers could theoretically double their yields using new types of fertilizers and better seeds. On banking, Melinda Gates said mobile finance is important not only for economic reasons but also for health ones. She said the foundation will put a special emphasis on making sure mobile phones reach women. “It’s so important because if they get an extra dollar in their hands they are 90 percent more likely to plow it back into the health of their families. They are the ones often dealing with the health shocks if the child gets malaria or otherwise gets sick,” she said.