Morgan Stanley's global initiative to reduce childhood malnutrition and save lives worldwide

Morgan StanleyOct 19 2009

Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) announced today that the Firm will launch “Step Up to the Plate,” a global initiative to reduce childhood malnutrition and save lives worldwide. This two-pronged approach is designed to address malnutrition by providing food to children most in need in developed nations, while also addressing the medical effects of children already experiencing malnutrition in the developing world.

“Our Firm has a 75-year history of dedication to improving children’s health. During these challenging economic times, it is more important than ever that we support those most in need – the more than 1 billion people around the world living in hunger,” said Tom Nides, Chief Administrative Officer at Morgan Stanley.

In conjunction with the Morgan Stanley Foundations, the Firm will support charities including Doctors Without Borders/Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) and Feeding America in an effort to alleviate childhood malnutrition as part of Morgan Stanley’s Global Alliance for Children’s Health.

"Our medical teams are working in many of the world's malnutrition hotspots, treating young children afflicted with a preventable disease that silently claims the lives of up to five million kids a year," said Dr. Matthew Spitzer, president of the board of directors of Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF). "With this very generous support from the Morgan Stanley Foundation, more children will receive the basic – yet vital – nutritional support they desperately need."

Morgan Stanley employees will also have the opportunity to participate directly with charities supported through this initiative including volunteer and educational programs to further raise awareness about this important issue. “Step Up to the Plate” follows the Firm’s highly successful Million Meal Summer where the company provided more than 1 million meals over the summer to children in the U.S. who would typically receive subsidized meals through school programs.

“We are grateful to Morgan Stanley for helping us provide food to the millions of Americans who live at risk of hunger in the U.S.,” said Vicki Escarra, president and C.E.O. of Feeding America. “They have shown true leadership by embracing the ‘Step Up to the Plate’ initiative.”

Morgan Stanley is a leading global financial services firm providing a wide range of investment banking, securities, investment management and wealth management services. The Firm's employees serve clients worldwide including corporations, governments, institutions and individuals from more than 1,200 offices in 37 countries. For further information about Morgan Stanley, please visit www.morganstanley.com.

Feeding America provides low-income individuals and families with the fuel to survive and even thrive. As the nation’s leading domestic hunger-relief charity, our network members supply food to more than 25 million Americans each year, including 9 million children and 3 million seniors. Serving the entire United States, more than 200 member food banks support 63,000 agencies that address hunger in all of its forms. Feeding America is headquartered in Chicago. For more information on how you can fight hunger in your community and across the country, visit www.feedingamerica.org.

Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) is an international medical humanitarian organization that delivers emergency aid to people caught in crises in more than 60 countries, from Burkina Faso to Pakistan. MSF provides impartial medical relief to the victims of war, disease, and natural or man-made disaster, without regard to race, religion, or political affiliation and was awarded the 1999 Nobel Peace Prize in recognition of its work. The organization has treated 500,000 children over the last two years through nutrition interventions.