Bill and Melinda Gates are putting their money where their mouth is to help people in Sudan.
The two are among nine donors who have pledged $4.5 million to help local aid groups in the country, which is on the brink of famine, the Washington Post reports.
"With few international aid organizations on the ground and extreme challenges accessing affected populations, Sudanese mutual aid groups have emerged as the most effective means to deliver aid to millions of people on the brink of starvation at this time," the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation says in a statement.
mutual aid groups "are maximizing their impact with meager donations from community members, nimble and innovative and entrepreneurial philanthropy," the foundation adds.
"We call on philanthropy, government and multilateral aid donors to join us in investing in mutual aid in Sudan as the most viable and cost-effective mechanism to reach at-risk communities now and for the foreseeable future."
The food crisis in Sudan, which has been ravaged by four years of civil war, has left more than half of the country on the brink of starvation, the New York Times reports.
The Gates Foundation says it will work with local groups to determine how to distribute funds and how to scale up their humanitarian efforts.
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Nonprofit impact investing firm, Acumen, has invested $1.2 million to KZ Noir, a Rwanda-based coffee processing company owned by Kaizen Venture Partners. The investment will equip KZ Noir the funds for working capital, debt refinancing, and capacity expansion.