The World food program (WFP) is the organization of food aid of UNO. The largest humanitarian organization of the world, WFP provides mainly food to the people suffering from the hunger. On average, each year, WFP nourishes 90 million people in 80 countries, including 58 million children.

History

Following a series of catastrophes during the year 1962, the General meeting of the United Nations decided, in 1963, to create WFP. Consequently, WFP worked without slackening to come to assistance of the people most stripped in the world. Its principal goal is to bring an emergency aid to the populations suffering from the hunger but the development assistance also forms part of the work of WFP.

Its seat is located at Rome, in Italy.

Mandate

The mission of the World food program is to eliminate the hunger and poverty in the world, while meeting the needs emergency and by supporting economic development and social. WFP also aims reducing infantile death rate, improving health of the expectant mothers and at fighting against the deficiency of micronutriants and the diseases like the HIV and the AIDS.

WFP aims at providing an food aid:

• with the victims of natural disasters the such earthquake in Pakistan in 2005
• with the people taken refuge or moved inside their own country - constraints all to give up following conflicts, of floods, drynesses or other natural disasters, such those which have occurred in Haiti, in Sudan and the Sierra Leone.
• with the poor suffering from the hunger which are not able to leave themselves the vicious circle of poverty and malnutrition.

WFP in figures

In 2006, WFP distributed more than four million tons of food to 87.8 million people in 78 different countries. The large majority of the assisted people (63.4 million) were reached thanks to the emergency operations of WFP (of which those in Kenya, Lebanon and Sudan).

The operation in Sudan is most important of the agency, which in 2006 has provides vivres to 6.4 million people in the country. In 2007, WFP will need US$685 million dollars to come to assistance of 5,5 million Sudanese (including 2,8 million in Darfur). After Sudan, the greatest operations of WFP are those in Ethiopia and in Kenya.

The food aid of WFP is particularly centered on the women and the children, most touched by the hunger and poverty. Indeed, 25% of the people suffering from the hunger are children. To fight against the hunger in the children, WFP provides since end of the year 1960 of the free lunches in the schools of the whole world, to allow the poorest pupils of going to school and concentrating on their lessons instead of on their hunger.

In 2006, the school Program of food reached 20.2 million children in 71 different countries. In addition to the meals of midday, WFP distributes also food intakes for the families of the children, another way of convincing the parents to send their children (and especially their daughters) to the school.

WFP employs a personnel of 10.587 people in 2006, of which 92% work directly on the ground.

In 2007, its budget was of 2,9 billion dollar S.

Organization

WFP is directed, since 1996, by a Board of directors trained by the 36 Member States. In April 2007, Josette Sheeran was appointed Executive director of WFP by the General secretary of the United Nations and the Managing director of FAO. She will exert this function for a five years mandate, with the assistance of four Assistant editors (Jean-Jacques Graisse, Sheila Sisulu, John Mr. Powell and Susana Malcorra).

References

1. Program Alimentarie Mondial: banner page - Which sums us? (consulted page on August 7th, 2007) http://www.wfp.org/french/?NodeID=2

2. Wikipedia: World Food Programs Entry (English). (consulted page on August 7th, 2007) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Food_Programme

External bond

• Official site

• Official website

• Together against the hunger http://www.fighthunger.org/france

• World Walk against the hunger, May 13rd, 2007 http://www.scout.org/fr/information_events/news/2007/walk_the_world_campaign

Random links:

Vacuum filtration | Moor-of-Fronsac | François Binet | Xavier Mussat | Cinetism