SudaneseOnline: سودانيزاونلاين

CANBERRA, Australia, February 9, 2012/African Press Organization (APO)/ — Australia is responding quickly to prevent a deepening food shortage in the Sahel region in Africa and address urgent humanitarian needs in Sudan and South Sudan.

 

Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd said that millions of people in the Sahel are in need of food following drought, reduced crop harvests and people movements from other parts of Africa affected by conflict, such as Libya and Cote d’Ivoire.

 

‘Australia is acting early to help prevent an escalating food crisis in the region, providing $10 million through the World Food Programme and other UN partners focussing on the worst hit countries of Niger and Chad. The investment will also help build preparedness in the region to help prevent future crises.

 

‘This builds on Australia’s existing work, through the CSIRO, to improve the long term food security and resilience of West African countries,’ Mr Rudd said.

 

In addition, ongoing conflict in the border areas of South Sudan have left villages burned, hundreds of people killed or injured and hundreds of thousands of displaced people without access to food, water, health and other basic services.

 

‘More than two million people across Sudan and South Sudan, particularly women and children, rely on humanitarian assistance due to ongoing conflict. This has been compounded by bad weather affecting crop plantings, and has led to a warning by the UN of an impending food crisis,’ Mr Rudd said.

 

In Sudan and South Sudan, Australia will provide a further $9 million through the UN Common Humanitarian Fund, the Red Cross and others to assist with a wide range of urgent needs including airlifting relief water, shelter and medical supplies to the hardest hit and most inaccessible areas.

 

SOURCE

Australian Government – AusAID