Brussels, 03/01/2006 (Agence Europe) - With a contribution of EUR 4 million from ECHO for Pakistan on 30 November 2005, the European Commission made its biggest contribution since 1992 to the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP). The EU's contribution in 2005 was 213 million euros, 8% of total donor contributions to the WFP, including 63.22 mil euros for Sudan, EUR 24.45 mil for Zimbabwe, EUR 7.7 mil for Pakistan, EUR 10 mil for Palestinian Territories, EUR 10.96 mil for Sri Lanka, EUR 14.07 mil for Indonesia, EUR 20 mil for Ethiopia, EUR 5 mil for Liberia, EUR 6 mil for Uganda, EUR 4.6 mil for Chad, EUR 2.72 mil for Algeria and EUR 4 mil for Haiti.
The WFP explains that 2005 was the 'most challenging year the humanitarian world has faced since World War II with disasters affecting tens of millions of people across the developing world like the Indian Ocean Tsunami, drought and locusts in Niger, the continuing conflict in Darfur, hurricanes Katrina and Stan and the devastating earthquake' in Kashmir. The WFP expects aid requirements will be huge in 2006 too (6 million people are starving in Sudan, 10 million people have AIDS in southern Africa and more than a million victims of the earthquake in Pakistan will need support, for example).