14 DAY TRIAL // Forbes’ annual list of the Most Powerful People for 2012 places Microsoft’s Chairman Bill Gates on the fourth place, ahead of the Pope, David Cameron and French President François Hollande.
This means that Gates is the fourth most powerful man in the entire world, with only US President Barack Obama, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Russian President Vladimir Putin ranked higher than Microsoft’s co-founder.
CEO Steve Ballmer, on the other hand, made the top on the 46th position, ahead of Bill Clinton and Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev.
Here’s what Forbes says about Bill Gates in its annual top:
“Gates' post-Microsoft mission includes eliminating many infectious and deadly diseases: By his own estimates, that could translate into 8 million lives saved by 2020. But the quintessential activist billionaire doesn't stop there: Gates continues to persuade his peers to sign the ‘Giving Pledge,’ promising to give away half their wealth or more.”