On Sept. 17 at the UN Security Council, an appeal was made for action against looming famine by top officials of three UN food and humanitarian relief agencies, in online presentations. David Beasley, Executive Director of the World Food Program, last night tweeted the gist of his message:
“Humanity is facing the greatest crisis any of us have ever seen. It’s time for those who have the most to step up, to help those who have the least. WFP needs US$4.9B to prevent 30 million people from dying of starvation.
“The world needs you now. It’s time to do the right thing.”
His next tweet drove it home: “There are over 2,000 billionaires on this planet with a net worth of $8 trillion. Some have made $billions during #COVID19. I’m not against anyone making money, but on behalf of the 30 million people who depend on @WFP to survive: can’t at least $4.9B be spared to stop famine?”
Beasley opened his formal briefing by saying, “Five months ago, I warned the Council the world stood on the brink of a hunger pandemic.” He then described what has been done since, but explained: “The threat of famine is looming again, so we have to step up, not step back. Quite frankly, 2021 will be a make-or-break year.” He said that a record $8 billion had been requested for the FYI 2020 WFP budget, but that was before COVID-19, and another $4.9 billion is essential. (https://www.wfp.org/news/wfp-chief-warns-grave-dangers-economic-impact-coronavirus-millions-are-pushed-further-hunger)
Beasley said that 270 million people are heading toward the brink of starvation. He described the impact of the COVID-19 lockdown. “As COVID-19 pushed countries everywhere to lock down, the equivalent of 400 million full-time jobs have been destroyed, and remittances have collapsed. The impact has been felt hardest by the 2 billion people who work in the informal economy around the world — mainly in middle and low-income countries. Already only one day’s work away from going hungry, in other words living hand to mouth. You and I have food in the pantry in a lockdown….”
