Facebook boss donates 99% of shares to charity after giving birth to first child

(Baonghean.vn) - On December 1, Priscilla Chan, wife of Mark Zuckerberg - founder of social networking site Facebook, gave birth to their first child. To mark this event, Mark Zuckerberg announced that he would donate 99% of his shares, worth $45 billion, to establish the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative charity fund.

Mark Zuckerberg with his wife Priscilla Chan and daughter Max on December 1. Photo: Reuters

This information is being posted on Facebook through a letter sent to Max, the newborn child of the Zucbergerg couple, with the content:

“… Health is improving. Poverty is decreasing. Knowledge is increasing. People are connecting. Technological advances in all areas mean that our children’s lives should be better than ours today…We will do our part to make that happen, not just because we love you, but because we have a responsibility to all children of the future…Can our generation eradicate poverty? Can we provide all basic care? Can we establish peaceful relationships and promote understanding between people of all nations?… If our generation invests properly, the answer to each of these questions can be yes, and we expect it from your generation.”

The letter also stressed the importance of developing the web. “One in 10 people with Internet access can lift one person out of poverty and create a new job. Yet more than half the world’s population, more than 4 billion people, do not have access to the Internet.”

The money pledged to the Chan Zucbergerg Initiative will be paid out over time. The charity is said to be aiming for a new foundation, “giving people around the world the opportunity to enhance and promote equality for children in the next generation.”

The Zucbergergs want to focus “in the early stages on personalized learning, eliminating disease, connecting people and building strong societies.”

Chu Thanh

(According to Le Monde)