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Saudi Arabia’s Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal al-Saud has pledged to donate his entire $32 billion fortune to charity in the coming years – one of the biggest philanthropic gestures in history.
The prince, a member of the Saudi royal family and nephew of the late King Abdullah, said his wealth would be put towards tacking the devastating effects of war and natural disaster, as well as difficult economic and social conditions.
Calling the bequest his “living will”, Prince Al-Waleed said: “It is a commitment without boundaries. A commitment to all humankind.”
The charitable focus would be on his home kingdom of Saudi, he added.
Speaking to reporters in Riyadh, the prince said the move had been inspired by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Set up by the Microsoft founder and his wife in 1997, the Gates Foundation gives away nearly $4 billion a year.
In a statement on Wednesday, Mr Gates said Prince Al-Waleed's "generous commitment promises to significantly extend the great work that his foundation is already doing".
As chief executive of Kingdom Holding Company, Prince Al-Waleed has built a fortune through investment in companies including Twitter and News Corp.
He said he would lead a board of trustees to oversee how his wealth would be allocated . “Right now the bulk of the income, not the assets, will go to good causes,” he told reporters.
Alwaleed Philanthropies
The prince has been involved in philanthropic work since the 1980s and restructured his institutions into Alwaleed Philanthropies. He has donated $3.5 billion to the foundation.
His philanthropy has spanned education, healthcare, emergency relief and infrastructure in 92 countries, and women and youth empowerment.
He is also an important donor to western academic institutions studying Islam and the Middle East.
He has funded centres at Harvard and Georgetown in the US and the British universities of Cambridge and Edinburgh. He is also the main donor to the Islamic arts hall at the Louvre museum in Paris.
"Since most of my wealth was achieved from this blessed country, I have made giving back to Saudi Arabia my number-one priority – after which our philanthropic efforts will extend to countries around the world."
– Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2015