EU in U.S.$247m Global Food Aid

from All Africa

East African Business Week (Kampala)

By Phillip Nabyama

All East African Community (EAC) countries but Rwanda are lined up for a massive food relief programme by the European Commission (EC) on the back drop of a detailed assessment on the levels of food insecurity.

Following the EC assessment, 17 priority countries were selected to benefit from the food programme valued at 160 million euros (US$247,041,201), the biggest annual amount to date.

"Vulnerable people in many of the world's poorest countries are increasingly exposed to natural disasters, conflict and economic pressures that can rapidly lead to situations whereby people go hungry. The European Union has an essential role in providing them with food aid, and in restoring food production," Mr. Louis Michel, the European Commissioner for Development and Humanitarian Aid (ECHO) was quoted in a statement.

Beneficiaries will include refugees, internally displaced people (IDPs) and host communities in areas affected by population displacement. Children and young mothers will be given priority. The EAC countries aside, the global food programme to feed about 18.7 million people will also benefit Sudan, Chad, Somalia Ethiopia DR Congo, Liberia, Zimbabwe and the Sahel Countries. Other countries are Afghanistan, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Colombia, West Bank and Gaza Strip.

According to the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), 854 million people are estimated to face chronic hunger across the globe. UNICEF and Save the Children statistics for May 2006 show that there are about 146 million malnourished children in developing countries and that 5.6 million children die annually due to malnutrition.

Mr. Morten Petersen (pictured left), the head of ECHO in Uganda said that although the programme funds are now available, ECHO and the World Food Programme (WFP) were still finalising on the finer details of the programme for Uganda.

"No food is yet out in the field. The figure will be significantly less since the situation in Northern Uganda is returning to normalcy," Petersen told East African Business Week.

WFP is currently implementing another food decission worth euros3million ($4, 631,980) that ends this March. Through 2007 to date, WFP has implemented food decission worth euros 8 million ($12, 352,060) on behalf of ECHO.