So you'd be forgiven for thinking it's fowl play for him to be dishing out financial advice to the poor people of the world.

But Gates has decided to tell people living in extreme poverty that the solution to their woes lies in raising chickens.

In a blog post entitled "why I would raise chickens", the tech mogul said he was cock-a-hoop about the barnyard animals.

"I've met many people in poor countries who raise chickens, and I have learned a lot about the ins and outs of owning these birds," he wrote.

"It's pretty clear to me that just about anyone who's living in extreme poverty is better off if they have chickens."

Gates is worth a whopping $76.6 billion (£52.9 billion) and earns an estimated $20 million (£13.8 million) every single day.