Stop Hunger, a global non-profit network that works for a world without hunger, organized on March 9 its 7th fundraising dinner at La Seine Musicale in Boulogne-Billancourt.
The theme of the evening, "Sowing Seeds of Gold", refers to the collective effort needed to fight the scourge of hunger and food insecurity, and to make food a fundamental right.
More than ever, the network is mobilizing in the fight against hunger and food insecurity, whose worrying figures continue to soar: 828 million people suffer from food insecurity worldwide, and food banks are on alert.
During the Annual Gala, Mouna Fassi Daoudi, Chief Executive Officer of Stop Hunger, said:
"Food banks around the world are sounding the alarm. Inflation and the cost of living no longer spare any country. We encounter hunger on every street corner. It takes on the face of a student, a refugee, a single mother, a pensioner... At Stop Hunger, being wait-and-see is certainly not an option! Our strength is collective. It builds on the generous and unique ecosystem of our founding partner, Sodexo. I invite you to sow these seeds of gold, to take action by helping us amplify our message and to be ambassadors of the cause at our side."
The 2023 edition, chaired by Mouna Fassi Daoudi, CEO of Stop Hunger and Sophie Bellon, Chairwoman of the Board of Directors and CEO of Sodexo, welcomed over 600 donor guests and 73 volunteers, with two key moments:
The Stop Hunger Awards ceremony, rewarding 4 outstanding women empowerment projects, supported by Stop Hunger in different regions of the world:
- Ustawi Afrika, a project to empower women farmers in Kenya to help them escape precariousness.
- Together we Bake, charity that works in the United States for the professional reintegration of women in vulnerable conditions through the learning of pastry.
- LP4Y, Life Project for Youth, that supports the education of young women in the slums of Manila in the Philippines, to provide for them in a decent way.
- Institut Anchieta Grajau, an apprenticeship-based program for women from the Favelas in Grajau, Brazil to help them enroll in an entrepreneurial project or find a job in the restaurant industry.
Second highlight: The presentation of the Volunteer Awards celebrating Sodexo employees engaged in volunteer and skills sponsorship missions with global NGOs, such as the World Food Program (WFP). These missions were carried out in several countries, including: Moldova, Lebanon, Bangladesh and Jordan.
The 2023 edition of the Annual Gala came to close a successful fundraising campaign that raised €1,015,000. These funds will directly support food aid and women empowerment programs, thanks to Stop Hunger's 300 NGO partners, including Food Banks, the CARE organization and the World Food Program (WFP).