World Food Programme Appeals For $700M Aid

Rome, Italy (AHN)-- Natural calamities, rising oil prices and the skyrocketing cost of basic commodities have bled dry the coffers the United Nations agency responsible for relieving hunger, prompting it to send an SOS to the global community.

The World Food Programme has launched an "extraordinary emergency appeal" to governments to donate at least $500 Million in the next four weeks to prevent them from rationing food aid to its tens of thousands of dependents worldwide.

The WFP, in a letter to donor countries, said if it fails to replenish its funds by May 1, it might have to cut "the rations for those who rely on the world to stand by them during times of abject need".

WFP executive director Josette Sheeran urged governments to be as generous as possible in helping the agency raise about $600 million to $700 million. The WFP provides food to about 73 million people in nearly 80 countries.

The U.S. is the largest WFP contributor, having donated about $1.1 billion last year, mostly in food shipments. The European Union, with $250 million, and Canada, with $160 million, are the second and third largest donors, respectively.