Melinda French-Gates has announced that she will be donating $1B across the globe to secure women’s rights, ncluding reproductive rights in the post-Dobbs era, in a span of 2 years.

Melinda French-Gates denounced her position in Bill and Melinds Foundation recently and also got separated from Bill Gates 3 years ago. Ms. French-Gates announced this $1B donation after explaining about  a backdrop of political violence against women and maternal health concerns globally.

“We remain the only advanced economy without any form of national paid family leave. And the number of teenage girls experiencing suicidal thoughts and persistent feelings of sadness and hopelessness is at a decade high,” she wrote.

“Despite the pressing need, only about 2 percent of charitable giving in the United States goes to organizations focused on women and girls, and only about half a percentage point goes to organizations focused on women of color specifically,” she added.

During Ms. Gate’s career as an advocate, she noted, “I have learned that there will always be people who say it’s not the right time to talk about gender equality. Not if you want to be relevant. Not if you want to be effective with world leaders (most of them men).”

She called such a perspective “frustrating and shortsighted,” saying decades of research “make it clear that investing in women and girls benefit everyone.”

“We know that economies with women’s full participation have more room to grow,” she wrote. “That women’s political participation is associated with decreased corruption. That peace agreements are more durable when women are involved in writing them. That reducing the time women spend in poor health could add as much as $1 trillion to the global economy by 2040.”

French Gates established Pivotal Ventures in 2015, with a primary mission to bolster opportunities for women and minorities in the United States, particularly within the technology sector.