Generosity aside, Warren Buffett's gift to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has raised questioned questions about the governance of philanthropy.

Concerns about governance and regulation have fuelled calls for increased public accountability from the mega-foundation, reports the Financial Times.

Some are worried that creating the world's biggest philanthropic foundation could ECHO the way Microsoft's Window's operating system dominated the software industry.

Already people are asking whether the agenda for world health should be determined in Seattle.



Certainly there might be accountability issues when a private organisation is scaled up to the size of a government instrumentality.

But Buffett's decision also reflects important demographic, financial and societal changes that are reshaping philanthropy.

I look at these changes and the question of governance here.

Clearly, more people like Buffett want to make a difference while they are still alive and have something to contribute.

But if it leads to the establishment of more foundations run by unelected private citizens, we can expect accountability and governance to become crunch issues.