U.S. Contribution Helps Conflict-Affected And Vulnerable People In Sudan
PORT SUDAN – The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) today welcomed a new food contribution from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) that is enough to feed 1.8 million people for three months.
Today the U.S. vessel Liberty Grace docked in Port Sudan carrying 47,500 metric tons of sorghum, a household food staple in Sudan.
The shipment is part of a US$135 million contribution committed by USAID to WFP Sudan for 2015 and will help WFP to provide much-needed food assistance to conflict-affected communities and other food insecure and vulnerable groups across the country.
This contribution comes during the lean season - when vulnerable households have exhausted their stocks of food and need assistance. The lean season in Sudan usually stretches from May to October.
“The American people, on this occasion working through WFP remain committed to helping vulnerable people in Sudan. We hope that fighting ceases imminently so that there will no longer be need for food assistance in Sudan,” said US Charge d’Affaires, Ambassador Jerry Lanier.
The United States has been a long-standing partner, supporting WFP activities in Sudan from the early 1960s. Since 2011, when Sudan split into two countries, the U.S.A. has been the single largest donor to WFP Sudan, contributing a total of some US$626 million to WFP Sudan’s emergency operations and a further US$19.8 million to UN Humanitarian Air Service (UNHAS). This contribution of US$135 million represents 74 percent of WFP’s food requirements in Sudan this year.
“We are grateful for the exceptional support of the Government and the people of the United States for their continued support which enables us to meet the needs of vulnerable and conflicted affected populations. The vessel which sailed from the U.S.A. has finally arrived in Port Sudan with the food that will be delivered to the remotest and most hard to reach areas of Sudan,” said WFP Sudan Deputy Country Director for Operations Margot Vandervelden.
The U.S. contribution will help WFP support food-insecure people in the country, including 1.8 million internally displaced in Darfur, as well as supporting more than half a million school children in Darfur and around 262,000 in central and eastern Sudan through WFP’s school feeding programme for a six-month period.
In 2015, WFP plans to assist 3.7 million people across Sudan through direct food assistance, cash vouchers and nutrition programmes, as well as recovery and resilience-building activities that help communities to become self-reliant. This includes 2.8 million people in the conflict-affected region of Darfur and close to one million vulnerable people in the Central, Eastern and Three Areas, including South Kordofan and Blue Nile states.
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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. Each year, WFP assists some 80 million people in around 75 countries.
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For more information please contact (email address: firstname.lastname@wfp.org):
Amor Almagro, WFP/Khartoum, Tel. +249 183248001 (ext. 2114), Mob. +249 912174853
Abdulaziz Abdulmomin, WFP/Khartoum, Tel. +249 183248001 (ext. 2123), Mob. +249 912167055
