Brussels, 16/10/2008 (Agence Europe) - On Wednesday 15 October, at the international community World Food Day 2008, the European Commission announced new emergency funding decision of €15 million for food assistance in the Horn of Africa, caused by a combination of shocks (in particular drought), local food inflation linked to high international prices, increased costs for fuel, transport and fertilisers. There are more than 10 million potential beneficiaries of this latest funding in five countries in the Horn of Africa: 4.6 million in Ethiopia, 3.5 million in Somalia, 1.2 million in Kenya, 700,000 in Uganda and 135,000 in Djibouti. The Commission's support covers the distribution of food aid, nutritional support, therapeutic feeding (especially for malnourished children) and short-term livelihood support including livestock protection and the distribution of seeds, tools and agricultural inputs. So far in 2008, the Commission has provided humanitarian aid worth €134.5 million for the Horn of Africa (except Sudan): €64 million for food assistance, €40.5 million for other forms of relief assistance and €30 million to improve drought preparedness in the region.
Increase in Commission budget on food aid: The overall food aid budget of the Commission's Humanitarian Aid department (ECHO) was increased by €100 million in 2008 and now stands at €323.2 million so far this year. The five largest recipients of Commission food assistance are Sudan (€86m), the Palestinian Territories (€40.36m), Ethiopia (€32.5m), Somalia (€27m) and Zimbabwe (€15m). (L.C./trans/rh)