Melinda French Gates to step down in July as foundation co-chair

May 13 (UPI) -- Melinda French Gates, co-chair of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the Microsoft founder's ex-wife, says her last day in that role will be June 7 -- three years after their marriage ended.

"This is not a decision I came to lightly," she wrote in a statement announcing this latest move.

Her impending departure from the foundation signals that that personal relationship with her ex-husband, with whom she has three children, has remained rocky or otherwise unsustainable to keep working together in the foundation they created.

In her statement, French Gates, 59, said under the terms of the agreement with her former husband upon her departure from the foundation -- one of the world's biggest -- she will retain more than $12 billion "to commit to my work on behalf of women and families."

The Gateses divorced in August 2021 and had come to a agreement under which French Gates would remain with the foundation for a two-year period on a trial basis.

"If after two years, either one of them decides that they cannot continue to work together, Melinda will resign as co-chair and trustee," the foundation's CEO, Mark Suzman, said at the time.

"In such a case, Melinda would receive personal resources from Bill for her philanthropic work," he said, adding how French Gates' now multibillion-dollar resources "would be completely separate from the foundation's endowment, which would not be affected."

French Gates called Suzman "extremely capable" in her announcement the same day Suzman wrote on social media how she "has played a crucial role" in the foundation's achievements.

"Her vision will leave a lasting legacy, and our foundation remains committed to creating a world where every person has the opportunity to live a healthy and productive life," Suzman posted on X.

For his part, the former Microsoft executive, in reaffirming his commitment to the foundation, thanked his former wife "for her critical contributions to the foundation from its very beginning," saying how French Gates "has been instrumental in shaping our strategies and initiatives, significantly impacting global health and gender equality," and that he was sorry to see her leave.

French Gates called this "a critical moment for women and girls in the U.S. and around the world," she said in her statement. "And those fighting to protect and advance equity are in urgent need of support."

"I am sure she will have a huge impact in her future philanthropic work," Gates said Monday about his ex-wife.