NAIROBI, Jun. 5, 2009 (Xinhua News Agency) -- -Thousands of people around the globe will join the UN World Food Programme (WFP) and its global corporate partners, TNT, Unilever (NYSE:UL) and DSM, on Saturday in a walk to raise awareness and money to feed hungry school children in some of the poorest countries in the world.
"Walk the World comes at a time of unprecedented challenges for the hungry and the poor," Josette Sheeran, executive director of WFP, said in a statement issued in Nairobi on Friday.
"Children are suffering because food prices are still high in many developing countries, and the global financial crisis is now hitting family incomes hard."
"End Hunger: Walk the World" -- an annual event now in its seventh year -- will see people walking for hunger in 70 countries.
It will begin in Australia with a climb up the Sydney Harbour Bridge and continue through all 24 time zones. It will be marked by pop concerts in Indonesia, and will conclude on the Pacific island of Samoa.
In Kenya, through a three-year partnership, Unilever is currently feeding 24,000 children in 65 WFP-supported schools and TNT, as the founder of the Walk, supports the agency's efforts to raise awareness of hunger through the annual event.
In addition to support from global partners TNT and Unilever, WFP Kenya has joined hands with two other corporations, Zain Kenya and Royal Media Services.
The two new partners are supporting the initiative through SMS and advocacy campaigns which will raise awareness and funds for WFP Kenya's school feeding program which feeds 770,500 children in the arid north and the Nairobi and Mombasa's unplanned settlements.
Zain Kenya, a mobile phone provider, has dedicated the SMS number 201 for all Zain subscribers and a ZAP (OTCBB:ZAAP) line 0736202020 for subscribers of all networks to send money to help feed hungry children in school.
Zain Kenya will collect the funds on behalf of WFP and will transfer the funds to WFP upon completion of the fundraising campaign.
Royal Media services has also partnered with WFP, through Citizen Television and Hot 96 FM, to achieve the goals of the Walk the World event, sensitizing the public on how they can make a difference in the children's lives as well as creating heightened awareness on the fundraising campaign.
Global high food prices coupled with failed rains in Kenya has pushed an increasing number of people deeper into poverty.
According to recent surveys, some 37 percent of people living in unplanned urban settlements are only able to afford one meal a day, and nearly 50 percent of children in WFP-supported schools are going to school hungry, without eating breakfast.
It costs WFP just 16 U.S. cents to provide a nutritious meal to a child at school in Kenya. School feeding programs also give parents an extra incentive to keep their children in school, and help to lay a healthy foundation for a better future for the young. "End Hunger -- Walk the World" provides a powerful demonstration of public support for WFP's fight against hunger, with employees from the three supporting companies walking together with friends and family, as well as celebrities and local dignitaries, and WFP employees.
In some countries, children who have benefited from the WFP school feeding program will also walk in solidarity.
The global event which will take place in Nairobi on Saturday comes as many Kenyans continue to struggle with high food prices.
They have resorted to extreme survival strategies, including eating just one meal a day and pulling children out of school to help search for food. Up to 1.2 million primary school-age children do not attend school, mostly in arid and semi-arid lands, and unplanned urban settlements.
WFP's school feeding program serves as an incentive to keep children in school and 770,500 school children are currently benefiting in Kenya.
Walk the World is a global annual event that seeks to raise awareness on child hunger and raise funds for WFP's school feeding program.
WFP is the world's largest humanitarian agency and the UN's frontline agency for hunger solutions. In 2009, WFP aims to feed 105 million people in 74 countries.
TNT is a global mail and express delivery company serving more than 200 countries. Since 2002, they have been an active partner of WFP and to date have invested over 50 million dollars in the partnership.
