Binance Charity Launches Blockchain-Powered ‘Lunch for Children’ Program
February 21, 2019 (Kampala, Uganda) -- Binance Charity Foundation (BCF), the philanthropic arm of the global cryptocurrency exchange Binance, unveils its pilot blockchain-enabled donation for its Lunch for Children program in 2019. The official launch was held on February 19 at Jolly Mercy Learning Centre in Kampala, Uganda, providing two meals a day for a full year (end of 2019) to more than 200 students and school staff.
The official distribution of the blockchain-powered donation officially kicked off at a launch ceremony attended by more than 500 guests of students, parents, sponsors, school partners officiated by H.E. Rosemary Nansubuga Seninde, Uganda’s Minister of State for Primary Education, and Dr. James Ssekiwanuka, the headmaster of Jolly Mercy Learning Centre, officiated the launching ceremony. BCF’s implementation partners Dream Building Service Association (DBSA) and sponsor Zcoin were also present.
During Minister Seninde’s speech, she highlighted that the launch of the Lunch for Children campaign in Uganda is a major milestone for the country, proving the public’s acceptance for innovative philanthropy. The program provides Uganda with a quantum leap platform for the next level of greater awareness of the gaps between the demand and supply, higher adoption of blockchain technology as well as significant improvement of primary education. She expressed her gratitude to BCF and Zcoin for their goodwill and expressed excitement in continuing the exploration of blockchain-empowered charity in a transparent manner to increase accountability and sustainability.
Dr. Ssekiwanuka highlighted the valuable learning process of educating the school staff and parents about blockchain technology and computer skills:
“It is not only a donation but a disruptive and significant combination of technology and charity, which enables a higher level of trust between stakeholders involved in this process, because people are protected from potential corruption that is vulnerable with middlemen. All the allocation records are demonstrated on the blockchain which is immutable. I firmly believe that the public trust and willingness to participate in this intervention will grow dramatically as the donors see their goodwill changing the lives of the students, in real time.”
This event follows Binance Charity’s recent announcement of its Lunch for Children campaign during Binance Blockchain Week in Singapore last January. The campaign aims to benefit 1 million people in the developing world, empowered by BCF’s fully transparent donation system. The Binance Lunch for Children program launch is its pilot showcase of the larger campaign, which will benefit students in additional schools across Uganda and other countries like Rwanda, Kenya, and Ethiopia.
The Zcoin team and its leading investors pledged US$24,000 worth of cryptocurrency to support the students and school staff in the Jolly Mercy Learning Center for breakfast and lunch for one whole year, comprising of three semesters.
“When BCF first reached out to us and told us about their charity efforts, we were intrigued especially when we learned how the funds were directly traceable to the direct end recipient and how they ensured that those cryptocurrencies could be spent on goods. We were particularly attracted to the Lunch for Children initiative as it was easy to see direct benefits and it was already a proven model. Too often, blockchain and cryptocurrencies have been associated with getting rich and lavish spending, and we felt that it was important that we as an industry be seen as giving back to worthy causes,” said Reuben Yap, COO of Zcoin.
“We reached out to our seed investors and team members who donated to the cause. Although we're a privacy coin, in this case, blockchain donations allow full end-to-end traceability of funds for transparency and accountability. We are hopeful that Lunch for Children sets a good first model in using cryptocurrency for donations and builds awareness of the potential of blockchain technology in charity.”
BCF and DBSA selected schools that serve poor children and chose reliable food suppliers that provide healthy food for children at a competitive price. The donation will be initially distributed to the cryptocurrency wallets of the children’s parents or legal guardians, who will then send their assets to the suppliers’ wallet to redeem for their children’s food. Everything will be on the chain and can be verified by everyone.
About BCF’s Lunch for Children
The Binance Lunch for Children campaign is a blockchain solution to problems related to hunger and access to primary education, The campaign is initiated by Binance Charity Foundation.
In East African countries such as Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania, a child only needs $0.30 a day to have breakfast and lunch that provide enough nutrition and energy to them. However, the daily income of most people who live in depressed areas is less than $1, which means they cannot afford sufficient food for their children. With the fully transparent blockchain platform, everyone can feed a child in a remote area in Africa and other developing countries.
This project has triggered immense interest from youth communities in China since it launched. Some Chinese volunteers who are 18 to 25 years old are already on board to provide facilitation, including computer skills, blockchain, and cryptocurrency knowledge transfer, and on-site monitoring the usage of fund and lunch distribution.
Binance Charity plans to expand the Lunch for Children campaign to surrounding countries, including Ethiopia, Kenya, and more. The campaign is now open for applications from any interested volunteers worldwide who dedicated themselves to the blockchain for children and social good.
About Binance Charity
Binance Charity Foundation (BCF) is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to the advancement of blockchain-enabled philanthropy towards achieving global sustainable development. Binance Charity aims to transform philanthropy by developing the world’s first decentralized charity foundation to build a future where blockchain technology can be used to end all forms of poverty and inequality, advance sustainable development and ensure that no one is left behind.