WFP seeks cash to avoid food aid cuts

from AlertNet

As international food prices continue to rise, it's getting more expensive to provide food aid. Not surprisingly, the U.N.'s World Food Programme is feeling the pinch.

The Financial Times reports that the agency responsible for alleviating hunger is considering "cutting the food rations or even the number of people reached" if donors don't stump up more cash to help it cover rising budget needs in the short term.

The newspaper says the WFP's funding requirements are rising by several million dollars a week as food prices climb. "Our ability to reach people is going down just as the needs go up," WFP Executive Director Josette Sheeran told the FT.

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