The World Food Programme Is Legit, Helps Fight Global Hunger

The World Food Programme (WFP) came into the sights of millions when Tesla founder Elon Musk tweeted a pledge to donate $6 billion to the humanitarian organization if it could give a plan for how to utilize it. After the WFP shared its plan, people want to know if the World Food Programme is legit.

The World Food Programme is a 501(c)(3) organization based in Washington, D.C. As with any charitable organization, potential donors want to know how their contributions will be used and if the organization manages funds well. Here’s a look at how legitimate the World Food Programme is.

The World Food Programme exists to help alleviate hunger. In 2020, the organization received the Nobel Peace Prize. During that same year, it helped 115.5 million people across 84 countries.

The UN World Food Programme provides humanitarian aid following natural disasters and wars. It has programs focusing on childhood nutrition and is entirely funded by voluntary donations. The organization states that 64 cents of every dollar raised goes directly to programs, while 2 cents are for processing, 6 cents help run the WFP, and 28 cents goes toward fundraising.

The WFP will be featured during a segment of ViacomCBS’ 60 Minutes on Sunday, May 1. The segment will focus on the World Food Programme’s efforts in Ukraine since the start of the war with Russia.

The WFP’s David Beasley will meet with correspondent Scott Pelley to discuss how the organization is working to combat hunger during the conflict. According to ViacomCBS, the WFP has brought food supplies to 2.5 million people in Ukraine and is preparing to eventually help 6 million people there.

In 2021, after a CNN article stated that 2 percent of Musk’s wealth could solve the problem of global hunger, Musk tweeted a response. He said if the director of the WFP could “describe on this Twitter thread exactly how $6B will solve world hunger, I will sell Tesla stock right now and do it.”

After some rephrasing by both Beasley and CNN, the $6 billion was stated as having the potential to help save 42 million people from starvation, not end hunger completely.

When Musk requested a detailed plan, the World Food Programme delivered. The WPF published a plan on November 15, 2021, explaining which countries would receive the majority of the money and how it would be allocated.

The CEO of Tesla has remained quiet since the initial Twitter exchange with the WFP director, keeping busy with his purchase of Twitter. According to ABC10 News, Musk’s SEC filings showed a donation of $5.7 billion worth of Tesla stock to an undisclosed charity in November, a few days after Beasley’s plan went public.

However, WFP said in February that it hadn't received a donation from Musk, and no other charity has acknowledged receiving it. Musk hasn’t said where the shares went either.