Elon Musk has said that he will sell US$6 billion worth of Tesla stocks if the UN’s food agency can prove how the money can solve world hunger.
The statement comes after David Beasley, director of the World Food Program, called out the world’s top billionaires — namely Musk and Jeff Bezos — in a CNN interview. Calling on the top 400 billionaires for a “one-time” donation to help save the lives of 42 million people.
“The world’s in trouble and you’re telling me you can’t give me 0.36% of your net worth increase to help the world in trouble, in times like this?” he said. “What if it was your daughter starving to death? What if it was your family starving to death? Wake up, smell the coffee, and help.”
Taking to Twitter on Sunday, the Tesla and SpaceX founder said: “If WFP can describe on this Twitter thread exactly how $6B will solve world hunger, I will sell Tesla stock right now and do it.”
If WFP can describe on this Twitter thread exactly how $6B will solve world hunger, I will sell Tesla stock right now and do it.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 31, 2021
“But it must be open source accounting, so the public sees precisely how the money is spent.”
Beasley responded by saying the organisation has systems in place for transparency and open source accounting. “Your team can review and work with us to be totally confident of such,” he said.
He also added: “$6 billion will not solve world hunger, but it WILL prevent geopolitical instability, mass migration, and save 42 million people on the brink of starvation. An unprecedented crisis and a perfect storm due to Covid/conflict/climate crises.”
With the money raised, the agency could potentially help with ongoing crises such as providng food assistance to places where access to such neccessities are difficult. For example, in Ethiopia, about 5.2 million people are in need of food after a civil rife had taken place last year. Thousands of civilians were killed, while more than two million people were displaced.
.@elonmusk! Headline not accurate. $6B will not solve world hunger, but it WILL prevent geopolitical instability, mass migration and save 42 million people on the brink of starvation. An unprecedented crisis and a perfect storm due to Covid/conflict/climate crises.
— David Beasley (@WFPChief) October 31, 2021
He also tweeted that with Musk’s help, the organisation can bring “hope, build stability and change the future”.
According to Bloomberg’s Billionaire Index, Musk has a net worth of US$355 billion as of Monday (November 1), making him the richest man in the world. Last week, Tesla became the sixth company in the US to be worth US$1 trillion and the second fastest to achieve that milestone after Facebook.
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