UN responds to Elon Musk after he challenges it on global hunger
The United Nations has set out a detailed plan to spend $6.6 billion to avoid famine in 2022. The plan is a direct response to Tesla CEO Elon Musk, who asked the UN to describe how such a sum could save the world from hunger.
In a document posted on November 15, the head of the UN’s World Food Program (WFP), David Beasley, proposes to dedicate $3.5 billion to buy and deliver food directly as part of the plan. A further $2 billion will be allocated “for cash and food vouchers (including transaction fees) in places where markets can function,” while another $700 million will be used to manage new food programs that are “adapted to the in-country” conditions and ensure “the assistance reaches the most vulnerable.”
This hunger crisis is urgent, unprecedented, AND avoidable. @elonmusk, you asked for a clear plan & open books. Here it is! We're ready to talk with you - and anyone else - who is serious about saving lives. The ask is $6.6B to avert famine in 2022: https://t.co/eJLmfcMVqE
— David Beasley (@WFPChief) November 15, 2021
Another $400 million is supposed to be used for “operations management, administration and accountability,” as well as supply-chain coordination.
“This hunger crisis is urgent, unprecedented, AND avoidable. @elonmusk, you asked for a clear plan & open books. Here it is!” Beasley said on Twitter, tagging Musk. “We’re ready to talk with you – and anyone else – who is serious about saving lives.”
Beasley’s proposal follows a back-and-forth with the Tesla CEO after the WFP director told CNN late last month that the time had arrived for ultra-wealthy figures such as Musk and Amazon head Jeff Bezos to “step up now, on a one-time basis” to help the “42 million people that are literally going to die if we don’t reach them.”
Beasley said giving $6 billion, or 2% of Musk’s net worth, could help solve world hunger.
The billionaire then responded in a tweet, suggesting: “If [the] WFP can describe on this Twitter thread exactly how $6 [billion] will solve world hunger, I will sell Tesla stock right now and do it.” He added: “But it must be open-source accounting, so the public sees precisely how the money is spent.”
Beasley replied to Musk’s tweets, assuring him that systems are in place for transparency and open-source accounting.
So far, the Tesla CEO had not responded to the proposed plan.
For more stories on economy & finance visit RT's business section
