Brussels, 29/07/2011 (Agence Europe) - The World Food Programme (WFP), the European Commission's partner in carrying emergency food aid to Somalia, continues its air bridge to Mogadishu and welcomes the increase in pledged donations on which it can count to help with famine relief.
The second flight arrived on Friday 29 July containing further nutritional supplements (Supplementary Plumpy) for malnourished children under the age of five, and brings to 28 tonnes of food aid carried to date by the WFP to boost stocks currently distributed by the local partner NGOs in health centres in 12 districts of the capital, WFP states in a press release.
WFP states it has recently received pledges of over US$250 million (€175.255 million) from Australia, Brazil, Canada, the European Commission, France, Germany, Ireland, Japan, Saudi Arabia, Luxembourg, Monaco, Sweden, the United Kingdom, the United Nations Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) and the United States. This funding comes in addition to that recently received from a number of states (Denmark, Finland, Kenya, New Zealand, Norway, Russia, Spain, Sudan and Sweden) before the state of famine was declared. “We are seeing the world coming together to help curb rising levels of hunger and malnutrition across the Horn of Africa”, Ramiro Lopes da Silva, Deputy Executive Director for external relations and resource mobilisation, was pleased to state, welcoming the “generosity of donors”. If pledges of donations are confirmed, a further US$252 million (€176.652 million) will be needed to finance the massive operation over the next six months. (A.N./transl.jl)