Only 2 Percent of Elon Musk's Wealth Could Solve World Hunger Issue

A small group of ultra-wealthy individuals could help address the issue of hunger in the world by investing just a small portion of their capital. This was stated by David Beasley, head of the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP), during an interview with CNN.

“Billionaires need to step up now on a simultaneous basis,” said Beasley, particularly mentioning the world's two richest individuals, Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk. “$6 billion to help 42 million people who literally will die if we don’t receive that money. It’s not hard,” he added.

Humanitarian organizations, such as the WFP, are trying to deliver supplies to those in need, which has exacerbated the crisis. “I don’t know where they are getting the food,” Beasley said. “We no longer have cash to pay our people; our money is running out.”

According to Bloomberg, Musk, the CEO of Tesla, has a fortune of $289 billion, meaning Beasley is asking for merely 2 percent of that wealth. The wealth of American billionaires has nearly doubled since the start of the pandemic, totaling $5.04 trillion in October.

The WFP's report states that half of Afghanistan's population, approximately 22.8 million people, face acute hunger issues. Rampant unemployment and a liquidity crisis mean the country is on the brink of a humanitarian catastrophe, with 3.2 million children under five at risk, the report indicates.

In Ethiopia, an estimated 5.2 million people need immediate food assistance in the Tigray region, where Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has been conducting a major offensive against the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) since last year. Thousands of civilians have been killed since then, and more than 2 million people have been forced to flee their homes.