UAE donates USD 25 mln to WFP, to help ease suffering in Sudan

The United Arab Emirates signed an agreement with the UN World Food Program (WFP) on Sunday to provide emergency food assistance to populations affected by the crisis in Sudan and South Sudan, totaling USD 25 million. According to UAE news agency (WAM), the agreement includes refugees, host communities, internally displaced people, and returnees impacted by the war. Representing UAE, Sultan Al-Shamsi, Assistant Minister for International Development Affairs signed the agreement, while on the behalf of WFP it was signed by Matthew Nims, Director of Washington Office. The ceremony was also in the presence of Lana Zaki Nusseibeh, Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs for Political Affairs, and Amina Mohammed, Deputy Secretary-General, at a special ceremony at the UAE Mission to the UN in New York. Around 17.7 million people in Sudan and 7.1 million in South Sudan facing acute food insecurity as a result of war in Sudan. To help alleviate this crisis, UAE has committed a total of USD 25 million in aid: USD 2 0 million for Sudan and USD 5 million for South Sudan. Cindy McCain, Executive Director of the World Food Programme, said, "WFP welcomes all pledges towards our lifesaving food operations in Sudan. With this contribution, we will be able to assist vulnerable people who are at risk of sliding into famine." This contribution is part of UAE's USD 70 million commitment announced in April at the "International Humanitarian Conference for Sudan and Neighboring Countries" to UN agencies and humanitarian organizations to alleviate the severe humanitarian crisis in Sudan. Source: Kuwait News Agency