OIC donates $300,000 to Somalia, Benin and Yemen

The donation, which is from the OIC's Islamic Solidarity Fund, includes $200,000 for Somalia, $50,000 for Benin and $50,000 to assist Somali refugees in Yemen.

Ghazi Bakhsh, Executive Director of the OIC Islamic Solidarity Fund, said that they will be signing a Memorandum of Understanding on future cooperation with UN food agency.

"We are keen on cooperating with UN organisations and are in the process of signing a Global Framework Agreement with WFP that would provide the basis for our future humanitarian assistance in the Islamic world." Bakhsh said.

WFP Somalia Country Director Peter Goossens said the $200,000 for Somalia would help ease the pressure on WFP's food supplies.

WFP aims to feed a total of 1.2 million people in Somalia in 2007. This includes people who fled their homes in Mogadishu during recent fighting and farming families short of food in the Middle and Lower Shabelle regions in the south of the country because of rain shortfalls, insecurity and an influx of displaced people.

"We thank the OIC for this donation which is very timely especially after our appeal for more funds. We hope other donors can do the same and help us avoid a break in our food assistance," Goossens said.

In addition to its operations in Somalia, WFP has been since 1992 providing assistance to Somali refugees who have fled to nearby Yemen. Its current operation -- valued at about $3.6mn -- provides some 34,000 Somali refugees, including women, children and new arrivals, with a total of 6,346 metric tonnes of food.

"We appreciate this generous contribution from OIC's Islamic Solidarity Fund especially that it comes at a critical time when the increasing number of refugees arriving in Yemen has put great pressure on the limited resources of both the Yemeni Government and WFP," said WFP Yemen Country Director Mohamed El-Kouhene.

The $50,000 donation to Benin comes at a key moment with people suffering from devastating floods. WFP already provides daily meals for 60,000 pupils across the country. WFP also assists 90,000 internally displaced people and refugees in Benin and Togo, as well as 24,000 people living with HIV/AIDS.

"We welcome this donation which will help WFP purchase some of the food aimed at feeding pupils in 400 schools," said Jacques Roy, WFP representative in Benin.