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Govt courts Bill Gates for Danantara board to anchor philanthropy push
The Gates Foundation has pitched a strategic collaboration with Danantara Trust, the philanthropic arm of Indonesia’s state asset fund, which is being set up to manage endowments and channel charitable grants.
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Developing new partnerships: President Prabowo Subianto shakes hands with Microsoft cofounder and philanthropist Bill Gates on Wednesday before a meeting at the State Palace in Jakarta. In the meeting, Gates was offered an advisory role in Indonesia’s sovereign wealth fund Danantara. (JP/Ruth Dea Juwita)
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icrosoft cofounder and philanthropist Bill Gates has been offered a seat on the advisory board of Danantara, the country’s recently established sovereign wealth fund, as he visited President Prabowo Subianto in Jakarta on Wednesday.
Gates, who chairs the Gates Foundation founded by himself and his then-wife Melinda, also pitched a strategic collaboration with Danantara Trust, the fund’s philanthropic arm, which is being set up to manage endowments and channel charitable grants.
The trust’s focus was inspired by Singapore’s Temasek Foundation, which operates separately from the main sovereign wealth vehicle, Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin said during the meeting at the State Palace, where Gates met several top officials and Indonesian philanthropists.
“I wish Pak Bill could sit on the board together with your friend Pak Ray Dalio, as both of you are already on the Chinese philanthropy board,” said Budi, referring to the China Global Philanthropy Institute (CGPI), a charity-focused initiative cofounded by Gates, Dalio and three Chinese business leaders.
“We have a systematic management [approach] that can help us earn the trust of these [local philanthropists] to provide grants,” he continued.
Read also: Danantara takes on Dalio, Sachs, others to ease governance concerns
Danantara unveiled its advisory board in March, naming as members hedge fund titan Ray Dalio, economist Jeffrey Sachs, former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, former Credit Suisse CEO Helman Sitohang and Capital Group equity portfolio manager Chapman Taylor.
