By Valentine Amanze, Online Editor
The billionaire Microsoft co-founder, Bill Gates, and his wife, Melinda, on Monday officially divorced after 27 years of marriage blessed with three children.
But the divorce, caused by irreconcilable differences, will not break their business relationship in Bill Gates & Melinda Foundation – a charity organization, which both founded.
“We no longer believe we can grow together as a couple.
“After a great deal of thought and a lot of work on our relationship, we have made the decision to end our marriage,” the pair tweeted.
“Over the last 27 years, we have raised three incredible children and built a foundation that works all over the world to enable all people to lead healthy, productive lives.
“We continue to share a belief in that mission and will continue our work together at the foundation, but we no longer believe we can grow together as a couple in the next phase of our lives.
“We ask for space and privacy for our family as we begin to navigate this new life.”
They first met in the 1980s when Melinda joined Bill’s Microsoft firm, according to Reuters.
The 56-year-old Texas-raised computer scientist, who met Bill Gates, 65, at a company dinner in New York, has also positioned herself, in a solo capacity, as an activist for women’s rights.
The organisation has spent billions fighting causes such as infectious diseases and encouraging vaccinations in children.
Bill Gates is the fourth wealthiest person in the world, according to Forbes, and is worth $124 billion (£89 billion).
He made his money through the firm he co-founded in the 1970s, Microsoft, the world’s biggest software company.