Brussels, 19/07/2006 (Agence Europe) - The European Commission has allocated an extra €10 million in humanitarian aid to Niger to reduce child malnutrition and mortality. A press release points out that this aid comes on top of €8.3 million of humanitarian assistance the Commission has granted to Niger since the start of the food crisis in 2005. The press release indicates that since the beginning of 2006, more than 150,000 children in Niger have been admitted to nutritional centres, many of which are supported by the Commission's aid. Aid is also being used to improve access to primary health care for young children and their mothers, and to help the poorest families regain their food self-sufficiency, for example through distributing seeds to families who visit nutrition centres. The recent outbreak of avian influenza in Niger resulted in a massive culling of chickens for which families were not compensated, causing additional hardship in a country where five million suffer from serious malnutrition. Commissioner Michel, said “Niger is one of the poorest countries in the world... Through our ongoing development work in Niger, the Commission is supporting the people of Niger to achieve food security to prevent children from suffering in the future.”