Sunway Group, in partnership with international hunger relief agency Rise Against Hunger, concluded the largest single-day meal packing event in Southeast Asia, achieving two million meals packed for underprivileged and undernourished communities around the region.
This year’s meal pack-a-thon event at Sunway Pyramid Convention Centre, held annually since Sunway embarked on this partnership with Rise Against Hunger 10 years ago, saw some 1,200 volunteers packing more than 500,000 meals.
Graced by His Highness Tengku Amir Shah Ibni Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah Alhaj, Raja Muda Selangor, alongside Sunway Group founder and chairman Tan Sri Sir Dr. Jeffrey Cheah and Rise Against Hunger founder Ray Buchanan, the event was held in conjunction with Sunway’s year-long 50th anniversary CSR and community outreach efforts.
Sunway Group founder and chairman Tan Sri Sir Dr. Jeffrey Cheah said during his welcoming speech: “We firmly believe that no corporation can stand apart from the communities it serves. That is why most of our CSR projects are focused on helping the marginalised and, often, the forgotten sectors of society. My deepest gratitude to all volunteers here today who are contributing to this noble cause.”
The meals packed during the event will benefit a wide range of recipients, including Orang Asli communities, orphanages, senior homes, the extreme poor and refugees in Klang Valley, stateless communities across Malaysia, and the extreme poor in Timor Leste – allowing more than 8,300 beneficiaries to enjoy two nutritionally dense meals per day for an entire month.
Sunway’s partnership with Rise Against Hunger began in 2014 and has since grown to become the cornerstone of its food aid programmes under the group’s flagship #SunwayforGood CSR umbrella, focusing on education, healthcare and community enrichment initiatives.
Rise Against Hunger founder Ray Buchanan said: “Thank you, Sunway, for the commitment to Rise Against Hunger over the last 10 years, and also every volunteer over the years and today.
Your dedicated support has allowed us to tackle food insecurity right here in Southeast Asia, serving your countrymen and regional neighbours, in direct alignment with the UN Sustainable Development Goal 17. Your support and engagement here with us today demonstrate the significance of both global and local partnerships on ending world hunger.”
To ensure that this pack-a-thon initiative was a success, Sunway also collaborated with several other NGOs such as 4×4 Relief Malaysia, Rotary Johor Centennial, Sahabat Orang Asli (Ipoh), Rotary Club USJ, Rotary Club Bandar Utama, Rotary Penang Straits Club, The Lost Food Project, and KENYANG.
To date, Sunway has packed over two million meals for the underserved and undernourished communities in Malaysia and throughout the region. Since this initiative began in 2014, Sunway’s staff and volunteers have collectively clocked in over 30,000 volunteer hours to pack meals comprising enriched rice, dehydrated vegetables, lentils and 23 essential vitamins and nutrients.
Looking ahead, Sunway remains committed to continue doing well by doing good for its communities through more initiatives in conjunction with its 50th anniversary activations. In November, Sunway looks forward to hosting a charity dinner in collaboration with long-standing partner Malaysian AIDS Foundation (MAF) to raise RM3 million to support MAF’s Medical Assistance Scheme for people living with HIV.
