FAO and MasterCard Announce New Partnership to Provide Financing Tools to Marginalized Communities (September 2, 2015) [1]
On September 2, 2015, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and MasterCard announced a new partnership designed to utilize global technology in development assistance. According to the press release [3], the “collaborative effort [that] will develop inclusive payment systems to support small-scale farmers and poor families” by providing “credit or money to households for purchases of basic needs and farming inputs on local markets, thereby supporting local economies and putting financial tools in the hands of economically marginalized communities.” The Kakuma refugee camp in Kenya will be the partnership’s first project, giving the 170,000 refugees currently living there prepaid cards to purchase locally produced charcoal. FAO Director-General da Silva noted that “[t]his partnership truly shows that the private sector is a key ally in global effort to build a world with zero hunger. FAO is extremely proud of this collaboration with MasterCard that will support small-scale farmers to become economically independent by advancing financial inclusion.”