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RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C — Paul Weisenfeld, Executive Vice President for International Development at RTI International, a nonprofit research expert and international development institute, is available to comment on the impact that COVID-19 may have on global hunger and food insecurity. The United Nations World Food Program recently announced that the number of people facing hunger globally could double by the end of the year, reaching a total of 265 million people.
The increase of people facing hunger could be due to several factors including loss of income for millions of families, increased conflict and immigrants working overseas not having earnings to send home, all exacerbated by ongoing challenges including climate change, violence and natural disasters. The World Food Program expects the impacts to be highest for countries across Africa and the Middle East due, in part, to the trading networks they rely on.
Mr. Weisenfeld leads RTI’s International Development Group, which designs and implements programs across a wide range of sectors in lower-and-middle income countries and communities. Prior to his career at RTI, he worked for the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and directed the then-Bureau for Food Security. Mr. Weisenfeld can speak to initiatives and policies that could be used to combat a hunger crisis overseas.
To request an interview, contact the RTI Newsroom at news@rti.org.
