Baku, November 12, AZERTAC
Smartphone users will now be able to help feed Syrian refugee children with a tap on their mobile phone thanks to the ShareTheMeal app, developed by the United Nations World Food Programme (UN WFP) and launched in countries around the world today.
Users can participate whenever they want and wherever they are. They can "share" their meals while having dinner with friends or eating lunch at the office. Even a donation as small as $0.50 will provide a child with vital nutrition for a day, claimed the UN.
Contributions will benefit Syrian refugee children in Jordan who are part of WFP's school meals programme.
"The simple act of sharing a meal is how people all over the world come together," said WFP executive director Ertharin Cousin. "This digital version of sharing a meal is a tangible way that Generation Zero Hunger can act to end hunger."
The potential of ShareTheMeal is enormous; worldwide there are 20 times as many smartphone users as there are hungry children. In a ShareTheMeal test launch in Germany, Austria and Switzerland in June 2015, more than 120,000 users provided more than 1.7 million meals for schoolchildren in the southern African country of Lesotho.
Added Sebastian Stricker, who founded ShareTheMeal: "With the global launch, smartphone users in many countries across the world can support hungry children."
The free app will be available for iOS and Android from 12 November in app stores worldwide. It only takes 30 seconds to register and users can start sharing meals with hungry children and follow the impact of their donations.
