Just TWO PERCENT of Elon Musk’s wealth could solve world hunger
The director of the United Nations’ World Food Program has called on billionaires to “step up now, on a one-time basis” to solve world hunger, claiming it would require only a fraction of their wealth.
In an interview with CNN, David Beasley specifically mentioned Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk, the world’s richest men, in his appeal.
“$USD 6 ($AUD 7.9 or $NZD 8.36) billion to help 42 million people that are literally going to die if we don’t reach them. It’s not complicated,” he said.
With Mr Musk’s net worth totalling almost $USD 289 ($AUD 384 or $NZD 402) billion according to Bloomberg, the sum Mr Beasley is asking for would equate to just two percent of his fortune.
$36 billion in one day - @elonmusk's net worth increase due to a @Tesla / @Hertz deal. Congratulations, Elon! 1/6 of your one day increase would save 42 million lives that are knocking on famine's door. Unprecedented crisis. Unprecedented wealth. Help!! https://t.co/n4hfpl5NRE
— David Beasley (@WFPChief) October 28, 2021
Mr Beasley has also taken to social media to call out the billionaires.
“Congratulations, Elon!” Mr Beasley wrote on Twitter after Mr Musk’s wealth increased by $29 billion in a single day.
“1/6 of your one day increase would save 42 million lives that are knocking on famine’s door. Unprecedented crisis. Unprecedented wealth. Help!”
Congratulations to @elonmusk for passing up @JeffBezos as the world’s richest person - worth a whopping $221B! 🥇 Elon, to celebrate I’m offering you a once in a lifetime opportunity: help us save 42M people from starvation for just $6.6B!! Offer expires SOON.. and lives do too.
— David Beasley (@WFPChief) October 19, 2021
Mr Beasley went on to say that many nations are “knocking on famine’s door”, due to a “perfect storm” of crises including climate change and the COVID-19 pandemic.
“For example, take the United States and the region in Central America, the Dry Corridor, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador and Nicaragua - just down in that area alone,” Mr Beasley said.
“We’re feeding a lot of people down there and the climate is just changing with hurricanes and flash flooding; it’s just devastating.”
According to a World Food Program (WFP) report released earlier in the week, 22.8 million people in Afghanistan - almost half the population - are facing an acute hunger crisis.
Meanwhile, the WFP estimates that 5.2 million people in Ethiopia urgently need food assistance. Mr Beasley said humanitarian organisations such as the WFP have also struggled to deliver supplies to people in the region due to ongoing conflicts between Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front.
“I don’t know where they’re getting the food from,” he said. “We’re out of fuel. We’re out of cash, in terms of paying our people and we are running out of money and we can’t get our trucks in.”
The struggle to feed millions around the world comes as both Mr Bezos and Mr Musk make continued investments in private space travel, which has been criticised by environmentally-minded individuals such as Prince William.
Image: @elonmusk / Instagram