The campaign, which aims to raise awareness about the issue of food waste in Egypt, comes in light of the government’s goals to implement a new law to reduce food waste, according to the FAO website.

The latest reports issued by the FAO revealed that the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region relies on imports to meet more than 50 percent of its food needs, yet it loses up to a third of the food it produces and imports due to waste.

Globally, the FAO estimates that 931 million tonnes of food, or 17 percent of all food available to consumers in 2019, went into waste bins of households, retailers, restaurants and other food services.

CEO of the Egyptian Food Bank Mohsen Sarhan said that the campaign aims to reduce food waste during the month of Ramadan.

The holy month traditionally features the consumption of large quantities of food at meals breaking the daily fast.

The campaign also aims to educate citizens to purchase only what they need during Ramadan, and encourage them to give what exceeds their needs to poor families, he added.

The campaign was launched in coordination and cooperation with the Unit for Monitoring Loss and Waste in Agricultural Products at the Agricultural Economics Research Institute, affiliated with the Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation.

The Food Bank is the first Egyptian non-governmental organisation established to eradicate hunger, aiming to deliver adequate food to families in need throughout the country. It was first launched in 2006.