End Hunger: Walk the World

A global challenge

Hunger and malnutrition are the biggest threats to global health worldwide. WFP is the United Nations’ frontline agency in the fight against global hunger.

Nearly 1 billion people – one in six on the planet – go to bed hungry at night, and the growth of one in three children in the developing world is stunted due to micronutrient deficiencies.

A shared commitment

Walk the World started in 2003 as an employee fundraising activity by the Dutch courier company, TNT. Unilever and TNT became the main organising partners of the event in 2007, with support from WFP.

In 2009, Unilever and TNT  together organised Walk the World with the Dutch Life and Materials Sciences company, DSM, joining as the third global organising partner.

Funds generated by the event help WFP provide free lunches to millions of children at school, giving them the micronutrients they need to develop physically and mentally.

Walk the World together

Walk the World took place on 7 June 2009 in 69 countries, with more than 330,000 people taking part.  There was also the chance to ‘give your step’ on Walk the Web. The aim was to walk all the way around the world’s circumference – that’s 25,000 miles – counting each dollar donated as a mile walked.

You can see the latest status and the inspiring messages from everyone who donated their step on www.wfp.org/walktheweb