UN food agency declares operation in Niger an emergency as child malnutrition rises
By APFriday, July 2, 2010
UN food agency: Niger now an ‘emergency operation’
GENEVA — The World Food Program has declared its work in Niger an “emergency operation” after a survey found a sharp rise in malnutrition rates among young children.
WFP spokeswoman Emilia Casella says 16.7 percent of children under 5 years old suffer from acute malnutrition in the African country. Children under 3 are particular affected.
She says last year the malnutrition rate was 12.3 percent. The threshold for declaring an emergency is 15 percent.
Casella told reporters in Geneva on Friday that the WFP plans to boost its child feeding program from 500,000 to 640,000.
It will also double food aid in Niger to reach 4.7 million people this year.
Food shortages in Niger have been exacerbated by bad harvests over the past year.
