WFP Welcomes US$1.3 Million Critical EU Donation To Algeria

The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has welcomed a
US$1.3 million contribution from the European Commission Humanitarian Aid
department (ECHO) to theist operation to prvide food aid to Western Saharan
refugees in Algeria.



"Time and again the European Commission has shown its generosity and
concern by funding WFP's work in assisting these refugees, who remain
extremely dependent on humanitarian aid," said Marius de Gaay Fortman, WFP
Country Director in Algeria.



The Western Saharan refugees arrived in Algeria in 1975 after fleeing a
territorial conflict. They settled in four temporary camps near Tindouf, a
remote town in the middle of the desert, where they have to endure harsh
climatic conditions, including extreme temperatures in summer and winter,
isolation and a chronic lack of economic opportunities.



WFP has been assisting the refugees since 1986. Western Saharan refugees
continue to rely almost entirely on assistance from the international
community.



Despite the support from the international community, there is continuing
concern about the nutritional status of the refugees, who have limited
access to fresh food and other required micronutrients. Results from the
last nutritional study in 2005 indicated that 39 percent of children under
five suffer from chronic malnutrition, while two out of every three women
of childbearing age suffer from anaemia.



WFP is concerned about a continuing slack of contributions which has caused
serious breaks in food distributions over the last six months. The 30-month
operation, which costs US$43 million, is currently facing a shortfall of
US$13 million, critical for purchasing 6,000 metric tons of food necessary
assistance over the next five months.



"These people risk being forgotten. WFP is committed to supporting them as
long as they require assistance, but to do so we will need continued
funding from the donor community," stressed de Gaay Fortman.



Donors include the European Commission (US$12 million), Spain (US$5.0
million), Switzerland (US$2.6 million), the United States (US$2.1 million),
Canada (US$1.2 million), Finland (US$648,000), France (US$609,000), Austria
(US$428,000), Ireland (US$368,000), Germany (US$237,000), Japan (US$40,000)
and Italy (US$20,000). A further US$5.4 million has come in multilateral
contributions and US$20,000 from the private sector.







WFP is the world's largest humanitarian agency: each year, we give food to
an average of 90 million poor people to meet their nutritional needs,
including 61 million hungry children, in at least 80 of the world's poorest
countries.



WFP Global School Feeding Campaign - For just 19 US cents a day, you can
help WFP give children in poor countries a healthy meal at school - a gift
of hope for a brighter future.



For further information please go to:
World Food Program WFP - We Feed People