SpaceX and Tesla CEO Elon Musk on October 31, 2021, said that he is willing to sell some Tesla stocks if the World Food Programme (WFP) shares a plan on how 2 per cent of total wealth which is $6 billion could solve world hunger. The development came days after in response to a remark by United Nations (UN) World Food Programme’s Director David Beasley who said that a small group of ultra-rich individuals could help solve global hunger with a just a fraction of their net worth.
As of November 1, 2021, World’s richest man Elon Musk’s current net worth jumped to $311 billion, as per the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
Also read: Elon Musk becomes world's richest person, total worth to touch $300 billion
WFP Director calls on billionaires Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos to step up to end world hunger
Billionaires need to "step up now, on a one-time basis, said Beasley. “$6 billion to help 42 million people that are literally going to die if we don't reach them. It's not complicated," Beasley added in an interview on CNN.
In response, SpaceX and Tesla CEO Elon Musk tweeted that if 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. Musk also added, “Please publish your current & proposed spending in detail so people can see exactly where the money goes.”
But it must be open source accounting, so the public sees precisely how the money is spent.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 31, 2021
How will 2 per cent of Elon Musk's total wealth help to solve world hunger, explains WFP Director David Beasley
David Beasley further pointed out that the 2 per cent which is $6 billion of Musk’s total wealth will “prevent geopolitical instability, mass migration and save 42 million people on the brink of starvation”. He explained that $6 billion will aid in mitigating the “unprecedented crisis and a perfect storm” due to COVID-19 pandemic, conflicts, as well as global climate crises.”
In a response to Musk’s tweet to publish spending plans in public, Beasley tweeted, “I can assure you that we have the systems in place for transparency and open source accounting. Your team can review and work with us to be totally confident of such.”
Also read: Global Food Security Index (GFSI) 2021: India ranks 71st out of 113 countries – Know Key Highlights
Global Hunger: About 22.8 million people in Afghanistan suffering acute hunger crisis, says WFP
The World Food Programme on October 25, 2021, in the latest Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) report co-led by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN and the UN World Food Programme, stated that more than half the population of Afghanistan (a record 22.8 million people) will face acute food insecurity from November 2021.
Also read: Afghanistan: 12.2 million people acutely food insecure, says UN
The 2021 Global Hunger Index (GHI) report launched on October 14, 2021, it is estimated that the 47 countries in the world will be unable to achieve even low hunger by 2030.
Also read: 2021 Global Hunger Index: India ranks 101 out 116 countries – All you need to know
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