What Is Our Big Bet For The Future

“Our Big Bet for the Future” was the 2015 annual letter written by Bill and Melinda Gates. In this letter, they describe the bet they made which was to better the lives of poor people at a faster rate than ever before. They plan on doing this by setting certain goals, or “breakthroughs” as they called them, which include eliminating certain diseases from the planet permanently and introducing “mobile banking” to people in Africa. These goals are certainly ambitious and progressive, but are they achievable by 2030 or even realistic at all? Within the next fifteen years, Bill and Melinda Gates plan on using realistic methods, such as vaccinations and modern technology, to reach rather unrealistic goals. Their first goal was to eradicate four

Common forms of currency in Africa include jewelry and livestock, which are relatively illiquid, as well as cash, just like in other countries. Unlike other countries, however, this cash is commonly hidden under mattresses instead of stored safely in a bank. Bill and Melinda Gates wants to change this by establishing a digital banking system with the usage of mobile phones. He claims the money will be safe and secure, and can be easily converted from digital dollars to tangible dollars. However, this idea of digital banking raises some important questions. People in Africa have been using this old method for years, how do the Gates plan on convincing millions of people that this new way of banking is safer? In the event that they do convince all of these people, who will educate them on how to use the phones and the mobile banking feature? Also, how will they afford all of this? Not only do they have to make the phones, but they would need to build locations where people can convert their money, banks, and stores where people can buy new phones. In fact, he points this out himself when he says, “making sure there are enough locations where people can convert digital money…” (Gates 19). If they can not do this, mobile banking will not be able to start. Another possible issue has to do with hackers. How can Gates prevent people from stealing money from others? This idea is advanced, but it doesn’t seem as secure as the Gates make it out to be (Gates