YouTuber and philanthropist MrBeast has hit back at online criticism after spending nearly $10 million on a newly built village in Ghana. The ambitious project, unveiled in a recent video, was designed to protect children from illegal child labour in cocoa-growing communities.
The content creator, whose real name is Jimmy Donaldson, unveiled Abna Dakwa Village in Ghana’s Eastern Region. Jimmy shared that the community features a school for over 300 students, 10 homes for teachers, a medical clinic, clean drinking water, agricultural facilities and a bustling marketplace. Students will also receive free school meals for five years to encourage attendance and reduce the financial pressure that often pushes children into hazardous farm work.
However, despite the positive global impact, the scale of the overseas investment sparked a debate online. One user on X questioned why Jimmy was not focusing his vast resources closer to home, specifically in his hometown of Greenville, North Carolina. The critic pointed out that Greenville faces a severe poverty rate of nearly 25 per cent, asking why such a massive financial commitment was not directed locally.
Jimmy was quick to respond and defend his charitable decisions. Highlighting the extensive work of his nonprofit organisation, Beast Philanthropy, he explained that his domestic efforts are just as substantial.
"I literally do. I have a 501c non profit and have distributed 10s of MILLIONS of meals in America, many in my local community," Jimmy wrote on X. "If I listed all the philanthropic things we do locally I literally wouldn’t be able to fit it in this tweet."
Beast Philanthropy launched Beast Pantry in late 2020 to combat food insecurity in Greenville and the surrounding areas. The local programme currently serves more than 20 communities across Eastern North Carolina and delivers approximately 80,000 meals each month. To date, the food assistance operation has distributed over 48 million meals to vulnerable individuals.
While his $10 million investment in Ghana aims to tackle systemic child labour issues, Jimmy continues to prove that his philanthropic vision spans across the globe while remaining deeply rooted in his own hometown.
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