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David Beasley, UN World Food Programme (WFP) Executive Director has called on billionaires to save about 30 million people who are at risk of dying if they don't receive help, Reuters reported.

Some 270 million people worldwide are on the brink of starvation, he said, and the World Food Programme hopes to reach 138 million this year.

“We need $4.9 billion to feed, for one year, all 30 million people who will die without WFP’s assistance,” Beasley said, noting that there are some 2,000 billionaires with a net worth of $8 trillion and several made billions during the pandemic. “I am not opposed to people making money, but humanity is facing the greatest crisis any of us have seen in our lifetimes,” said the former South Carolina governor.

The combined wealth of America's billionaires has jumped more than 19%, or half a trillion, since the COVID-19 outbreak in the United States, according to a report released by the Institute for Policy Studies (IPS) in June.

In the 11 weeks since March 18, Amazon.com Inc founder Jeff Bezos' wealth has grown by about $ 36.2 billion, and Facebook Inc. Mark Zuckerberg's is up by $ 30.1 billion.  Tesla Inc. CEO Elon Musk's wealth also grew by $ 14.1 billion.

“It’s time for those who have the most to step up, to help those who have the least in this extraordinary time in world history,” Beasley said. “The world needs you right now and it’s time to do the right thing.”

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