The Delegation of the European Commission in Sierra Leone has signed a Contribution Agreement with the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) Sierra Leone in response to the high food prices, with funding volume of Euro 2.7 million.

"This generous donation from the European Union (EU) will enable WFP to support the efforts of Government and other partners in mitigating the short-term impact of high food prices which threatens the nutritional status and wellbeing of mothers, children and youths in Sierra Leone," said WFP Representative, Christa Rader.

The EU funding will help to scale-up existing WFP food assisted safety net interventions in collaboration with the Government of Sierra Leone. The focus will be on vulnerable urban and peri-urban communities in the Western Area as well as Port Loko and Moyamba districts. In total, some 70, 000 persons in these districts will benefit.

The donation will assist 11, 500 women and children including people living with HIV/AIDS and vulnerable groups under the Mother-and-Child Health and Nutrition programme, and provides a daily lunch to 36, 000 children in more than 100 public schools.

Moreover, approximately 1, 100 young men and women will be supported to engage in short-term employment and skills training. Some 22, 000 people belonging to around 4, 400 food insecure families will be assisted in return for their work in rehabilitating inland valley swamps and feeder roads, planting trees and producing vegetables. While food for work will be provided in areas further away from markets, cash for work will be piloted in targeted areas of Freetown and its surroundings.

These activities will closely link to another EU-funded food security programme that focuses on production and marketing support through Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and will complement rural safety net interventions of other organizations also supported by the EU.

With a total funding volume of currently more than Euro 40 million, the European Commission is by far the biggest donor in the field of food security in Sierra Leone.

WFP is the world’s largest humanitarian agency and the UN’s frontline agency for hunger solutions. In 2009, WFP Sierra Leone aims to provide food assistance to around 700, 000 vulnerable people.