News

WFP increases Mali appeal to help 175,000 children under five

WFP has increased its emergency appeal for Mali in order to feed an additional 175,000 children in the hardest-hit parts of the country and avoid it slipping into a humanitarian crisis similar to neighbouring Niger. ...

16 August 2005

WFP pre-positions food in Gaza for Palestinians affected by Israeli withdrawal

Israel has withdrawn military forces and evacuated Jewish settlers from the Gaza Strip and the northern part of the West Bank. Concerned that the pullout might cause logistical problems, WFP pre-positioned enough food in the Gaza Strip to feed the 156,000 Palestinians who benefit from WFP rations until the end of October.

15 August 2005

Soccer's Ronaldinho joins the fight against child hunger

Barcelona, 14 August 2005 - Soccer's reigning World Player of the Year Ronaldinho, the charismatic Brazilian renowned for his smile and his ability to score jaw-dropping goals, is to use his global celebrity to help WFP in its fight against child hunger, the agency has announced.

13 August 2005

IAAF ambassadors call for a better world

Double heptathlon world champion Carolina Klüft of Sweden together with former Olympic sprint relay champion Debbie Ferguson of the Bahamas are supporting a newly introduced IAAF humanitarian project, Athletics for a ...

12 August 2005

WFP increases aid to Sudan as food shortages intensify

At the height of the annual ‘hunger gap’ and rainy season, WFP is particularly concerned about the chronically impoverished regions of Bahr El Ghazal in the South, and the Kordofans in central Sudan and Red ...

8 August 2005

LARGE-SCALE DISTRIBUTIONS BEGIN

On Saturday, 6 August, a TNT Airbus 300 landed in Nigers capital, Niamey, at 22.35 local time, carrying 33 metric tons of High Energy Biscuits (HEB). The plane had earlier loaded its cargo at the UN Humanitarian Response Depot in Brindisi, Italy. WFP Niger has arranged to have these HEB transported immediately to Zinder, Maradi and Diffa where they are urgently needed, particularly for children under five. The TNT Airbus, which belongs to WFPs corporate partner, the global mail, express and logistics company, was off-loaded in just over two hours and left for Europe the same night.

4 August 2005

AIRLIFTS AND DISTRIBUTIONS CONTINUE

WFP is currently in the process of airlifting from Abidjan to Niamey 186 tons of corn soya blend (CSB a highly nutritious fortified blend, mainly intended for young children and pregnant and lactating mothers).

3 August 2005

No More Nigers

In a special article for WFP, Desmond Tutu, archbishop emeritus of Cape Town and Nobel prize winne, warns that there are other "Nigers" waiting to happen on the African continent.

1 August 2005

DISTRIBUTIONS BEGIN

Distributions are starting this week in the areas of Niger most affected by the food crisis.

29 July 2005

AIRLIFT TAKES OFF

WFP's airlift of emergency food rations to Niger took off on schedule today from its humanitarian response depot in Brindisi, southern Italy. The Ilyushin 76 aircraft, its hold packed with 44 metric tons of high-energy biscuits, will reach Niger's capital Niamey this evening. A technical fault had delayed the flight by 24-hours.