Sami Yusuf urges community to help fight hunger in Africa

Posted on February 7th, 2012

Internationally acclaimed artist Sami Yusuf appealed to the media and donors on Wednesday to not forget the people in the Horn of Africa who are facing hunger and in some areas the continuing impact of the worst drought in 60 years.

He addressed a press event hosted by Kempinski Hotel at the Mall of the Emirates when his music video of “Forgotten Promises” was revealed for the first time to the media. Directed by music video director Siros Kerdouni and filmed in 16 cities across the globe, the video includes scenes featuring Sami Yusuf playing the piano in the middle of the desert and in the empty streets of Sharjah, which were cleared especially for the video shoot.

“Most victims are Somali families, who continue to run away from conflicts and drought affecting their country and, when lucky, find themselves in refugee camps in Kenya and Ethiopia,” said Sami Yusuf, a Celebrity Partner for the UN World Food Programme (WFP), during a press conference in Dubai. “They never asked to be there; our conscience and humanity cannot allow us to let those people down.”

The British singer and composer dedicated his latest song “Forgotten Promises” to the fight against hunger in the Horn of Africa. The song is at the heart of a fundraising campaign entitled “LiveFeed.” All proceeds will be donated to WFP to help sustain and scale up its relief efforts in the region, where millions of lives are still being threatened.

Yusuf’s initiative, through his partnership with WFP, aims at reviving donors’ interest to help WFP address the severe food crisis. The multi-talented artist, who has millions of dedicated followers, said he would continue to address the wider cause of fighting hunger through his music.

“I chose this fight because I find it unbearable that one in seven people in the world still goes hungry to bed every night, and that five million children die of hunger-related causes every year,” he said. “Hunger is a solvable problem. From the moment we know that, we have to do something about it.”

“LiveFeed” offers people the opportunity to fight hunger in the Horn of Africa by downloading the song, or making a direct donation online through www.livefeedafrica.org. With each song downloaded at US$0.99, WFP is able to feed two people in the Horn of Africa for a day.

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