Bill Gates made the largest ever single charitable donation when he pledged $10billion (£6billion) to develop and distribute vaccines.

The Microsoft founder hopes the money, to be spent over the next ten years through his foundation, will save the lives of more than eight million children in the world's poorest countries.

'We must make this the decade of vaccines,' he said. 'Vaccines already save and improve millions of lives.

'Innovation will make it possible to save more children than ever before.'

Gates said the commitment more than doubles the £2.8billion the foundation has given to vaccine research over the years.
The foundation said up to 7.6 million children under five could be saved through 2019 as a result of the donation.

It also estimates that an additional 1.1 million kids would be saved if a malaria vaccine can be introduced by 2014. A tuberculosis vaccine would prevent even more deaths.

‘Vaccines are a miracle,’ said Melinda Gates.‘With just a few doses, they can prevent deadly diseases for a lifetime.’
The pledge is the biggest single donation to be made for one cause in one go.

Ten years ago the couple also pledged £6billion, to be split between health and education causes, with £3billion going on vaccines.

The world’s biggest philanthropist is financier Warren Buffett.
He has donated £18billion of his £30billion fortune to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, but that is to be paid in instalments and used for a variety of charity work.

Mr Buffett has given away 80 per cent of his net worth.
Mr Gates’ total donations now add up to £24billion, some 66 per cent of his £36billion fortune.

It comes as Mr Gates launched a scathing attack on Silvio Berlusconi, accusing the Italian Prime Minister of spending more on his thinning hair than he does on foreign aid.

Gates hit out at Mr Berlusconi's 'stinginess' and said the controversial politician was the main figure on his 'list of shame'.
And, in a clear reference to Mr Berlusconi's hair transplant, he told German daily Sueddeutche Zeitung that 'rich people spend a lot more on personal problems like baldness than they do to combat malaria'.