Nine biggest 'surprises' from Bill and Melinda Gates' annual letter

Philanthropists Bill and Melinda Gates on Tuesday published their 2019 annual letter, titled Things We Didn't See Coming.

"Surprise" is the primary theme running through the letter, which opened with the questions, "How would you describe 2018? Was it what you expected?"
Bill and Melinda, for their part, answered, "We’d probably say no."

The letter revealed nine things that have surprised them over the course of their nearly two decades together in global health and development.

Check out of some of the surprises in the video.

Africa is the youngest continent

Everywhere in the world but Africa, people’s average age is going up, Bill said. On the African continent, however, – especially in sub-Saharan Africa –average ages remain young.

The world will build an entire New York City every month for 40 years

We need to get to near-zero emissions on all things that drive this construction, including building materials, according to Bill.

Data can be sexist

Melinda not only expressed concern about missing data on women, but also criticized the way data is collected.

Phones most powerful for poorest women

Mobile phone could help women build entirely new lives, challenge social norms and the power structures that perpetuate gender inequality.

Video credit: Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation