NEW YORK, United States of America, May 16, 2016/APO (African Press Organization)/ —
The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) today welcomed a contribution from the Government of Switzerland worth 2.4 million Swiss Francs (US$2.4 million) to support WFP’s early recovery and safety-net activities aimed at improving household food security across Sudan.
“The Government of Switzerland has been a longstanding partner of WFP, supporting efforts to promote early recovery and build resilience amongst communities that have been affected by conflict in Sudan. These cash and in-kind contributions are another step in this relationship and are meant to boost WFP’s ability to serve affected communities as well as contribute to the continuity of its programmes,’’ said Ambassador of Switzerland to Sudan Martin Strub.
The contribution is split into a cash grant of 1.5 million Swiss Francs (US$1.5 million) and an in-kind donation of dried skimmed milk, valued at 930,689 Swiss Francs (US$933,489).
WFP will use the funds to buy 276 metric tons of special nutritional products aimed at treating and preventing acute malnutrition that often follows shocks and protracted displacement. This quantity is enough to cover the needs of more than 33,000 pregnant and nursing mothers and children under five, for three months.
The 250 metric tons of dried skimmed milk will complement the regular hot meals provided to children through WFP’s school feeding projects in North, South and West Kordofan states which benefit some 175,000 school children. The milk will be served twice a day as a hot milk drink or cooked with wheat, millet or rice and sugar to boost the children’s daily nutritional intake by around 25 percent.
“This generous contribution from the people and Government of Switzerland promotes our efforts to help the people we serve recover from setbacks as well as build their strength to face possible future shocks such as natural disaster or conflict,” said WFP Representative and Country Director Adnan Khan. “Both nutrition and education are key to helping families and communities rebuild their lives and secure a better future for their children and ultimately their country.”
WFP operations in Sudan remain one of the agency’s largest and most complex, providing food assistance to vulnerable people in Darfur and other food insecure groups in the east and border areas to the south.
In July 2015, WFP launched a new two-year plan in Sudan to provide 5.2 million people by mid-2017 with life-saving food assistance, nutritional support as well as recovery and resilience-building activities to help communities become self-reliant.
