OncologyUnited To Fight Child Hunger Across The World
Tens of thousands of people yesterday took to the streets in
cities around the world to show their support for the work of the
United
Nations World Food Programme (WFP) in the fight against global hunger.
The annual "End Hunger: Walk the World" initiative mobilised an
estimated
300,000 people to raise awareness and funds for WFP"s school
feeding
programmes. At least 200 walks took place in 70 countries across all
24
time zones.
Now in its seventh year, the Walk the World event is sponsored by three
of
WFP"s global private sector partners: express delivery company
TNT,
consumer goods company Unilever, and nutrition and life-science
specialists
DSM.
"Walk the World - both in its global scope and in its diversity -
showed
that the problem of hunger and undernutrition resonates with people
from
all walks of life," said Nancy Roman, WFP"s Director of Public
Policy,
Communications and Private Partnerships. "Hunger is a problem that
touches
one out of every seven people on this planet, and it is our
responsibility
to take action collectively to fight hunger."
The worldwide series of walks kicked off in Australia with a climb
up
Sydney Harbour Bridge. In the Philippines, monsoon rains gave way to
bright sunny day for 6,000 people to walk together in the streets
of
Manila, while in Indonesia an early-morning walk followed by a
concert
attracted 12,000 supporters.
The largest walks took place on the African continent, with 64,000
people
walking in 53 locations in Malawi and 50,000 people gathering in
Tanzania
under the enthusiastic leadership of Prime Minister Mizengo Kayanza
Peter
Pinda, who walked in Arusha. In Burkina Faso, Walk the World became
flagship event for the women of the country. Under the patronage of
the
first lady Chantal Kompaorç© and many other eminent women, the walk
and
concert attracted 15,000 people. In Kenya, WFP Ambassador Against
Hunger
Paul Tergat - a champion marathon runner and former school
feeding
beneficiary - joined walkers in Nairobi.
In Europe, the largest walk took place in Portugal with about
4,000
participants, while the CEOs of the three global sponsors of the
event
walked in The Hague in The Netherlands. In Denmark, participants
braved
blustery weather to walk together and to taste a rice-and-beans
dish
prepared by a celebrity chef inspired by the meals WFP distributes
to
schoolchildren in Tanzania.
Supporters of the fight against hunger in Egypt walked through the
old
citadel of Cairo. In the Americas, walks began in New York City with a
walk
in Battery Park. WFP"s Filipina Ambassador Against Hunger KC Concepcion,
on
tour in Canada, joined walkers in Toronto. In Latin America, walks
ranged
from a massive 30,000 participants in the Honduran capital of
Tegucigalpa
to just a few hundred determined walkers on the island of Trinidad.
Hundreds of supporters also joined a virtual online walk, where donations
were counted as miles walked with the objective of "walking" 25,000 miles
around the world. At the time of writing more than US$17,600 had been
donated. The online walk will remain open at http://www.wfp.org/walktheweb until
the end of June.
United Nations World Food Programme