Press Release

OPEC Fund extends grant of US$1.2 million to aid famine victims in the African Sahel

99/2005 September 8, 2005, Vienna, Austria
Press inquiries:

The OPEC Fund for International Development has extended a grant of US$1.2 million to support emergency operations launched by the World Food Program (WFP) for the delivery of urgently-needed food and other supplies to four famine-afflicted countries in the African Sahel region.

The combination of drought and the worst locust invasion in two decades has had devastating results on agricultural production in the Sahel region. Millions of acres of crops have been damaged or destroyed, causing widespread famine in countries already experiencing chronic food insecurity and poverty. In addition, the scarcity of animal fodder has caused thousands of cattle to perish. The situation is particularly acute for some six million people in Niger, Mali, Mauritania and Burkina Faso, where malnutrition rates, especially among children, have soared, and livelihoods are under serious threat.

Although the international donor community has responded generously to appeals for assistance, gaps still exist in meeting current needs. The WFP is stepping up its emergency operations to deliver additional supplies in the form of agricultural inputs and foodstuffs such as vegetable oil, sugar, rice, high-energy biscuits and enriched Corn Soya Blend, as well as fodder for livestock. The Fund’s grant will be distributed among the affected countries, in proportion with the number of afflicted people, and will be channeled through the WFP.

The OPEC Fund has been a regular contributor to famine relief efforts in Africa. In 2003, a US$20 million Food Aid Special Grant Account helped purchase over 43,000 metric tons of food aid for famine victims in Eritrea, Ethiopia, Lesotho, Malawi, Mauritania, Mozambique, Swaziland, Zambia and Zimbabwe. Earlier, in 1981, US$25 million was donated to the International Food Reserve, while, in 1984 a grant of US$5 million helped purchase vehicles for food distribution.