Alibaba and World Food Programme Leverage Technology to Combat Global Hunger

Alibaba Group and the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) announced in Hangzhou on September 26 the launch of “Hunger Map LIVE,” a global hunger monitoring system.

The system uses Artificial Intelligence (AI), machine learning and data analytics to predict and track the magnitude and severity of hunger in over 90 countries in close to real-time.

“We are excited to provide our leading technology and resources to join WFP in the journey to fight hunger. Launching Hunger Map LIVE is only the first step,” said Lijun Sun, Alibaba Partner and Chairman of Alibaba Foundation.

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Hunger Map LIVE brings together streams of publicly available information on food security, nutrition, conflict, weather and a variety of other macro-economic data – including from the WFP to show a holistic picture of the global food security situation.

Advanced data visualization tools then convert the resulting analysis of food insecurity at the global, country and subnational levels, and display it on an interactive map.

By having the most up-to-date food security information on one central platform, the WFP, the broader humanitarian community and global leaders can monitor progress and identify negative trends early, making it possible to make better-informed decisions to improve efficiency and response time while curtailing costs.

“The Hunger Map LIVE demonstrates WFP’s commitment to digital transformation, working strategically with partners like Alibaba to use technology in ways that help us become more efficient and effective,” said David Beasley, WFP Executive Director.