Bailing out poor people around the world, Saudi Arabia has donated half a billion dollars to the UN World Food Programme (WFP) to battle the global food price crisis. “The Saudi donation will keep many people from dying, others from slipping into malnutrition and disease, and will even help to stave off civil unrest,” WFP executive director Josette Sheeran said in a statement on the agency’s website. The WFP, which operates in 78 countries and helps feed an estimated 73 million people, launched the 755 million dollar emergency appeal in March. Thirty-one countries had given 460 million dollars to the WFP appeal before the Saudi donation came in. The Rome-based agency said the Saudi donations will help secure much-needed food for programmes throughout Africa and other parts of the world. “In particular, WFP will be able to continue to providing food for millions of children enrolled in schools and therapeutic feeding programmes in Kenya, Yemen, Ethiopia and Somalia and in many other critical hunger zones. “The 500 million dollars from Saudi Arabia rounds out the appeal, and leaves an additional 214 million dollars available for other urgent hunger needs.”
SAUDI AID FOR WORLD FOOD PROGRAMME
Bailing out poor people around the world, Saudi Arabia has donated half a billion dollars to the UN World Food Programme (WFP) to battle the global food price crisis.
