“Activation is simple,” WFP said in its announcement. “By registering on the platform, card holders will be able to activate micro-donations, deciding the amount of each donation – starting from a minimum of .10 euros [about 12 cents] for every purchase offline and online.

“This exciting collaboration allows Poste Italiane MasterCard cardholders to contribute to micro-donations every time they use their card to buy something - for the first time in Italy - and from launch will immediate help raise important funding to support school meal projects in developing countries,” it said.

To support the launch, new research looked into the donation habits of Italians and found that Italians are strong supporters of charitable contributions, especially for causes relating to scientific and medical research (32 per cent), hunger in developing countries (17 per cent) and humanitarian emergencies (17 per cent) followed by the support to the poor in Italy, medical care and animal protection.

“Italians now have a simple way to join the UN World Food Programme to provide a nutritious meal to the 20 million school children we feed every day,” said Elisabeth Rasmusson, WFP’s Assistant Executive Director.

“We are honoured that Poste Italiane and MasterCard have chosen WFP for this initiative, and I want to encourage everyone to do their part in building a world with zero hunger.”

WFP is the world's largest humanitarian agency fighting hunger worldwide, delivering food assistance in emergencies and working with communities to improve nutrition and build resilience. In 2013, WFP assisted more than 80 million people in 75 countries.

School girls at Ibn Sina school in Gaza enjoying their WFP in-school snack. Photo: WFP/Eman Mohammed