Executive Director in Hunger-Threatened West African Sahel

Published May 17, 2018

DAKAR – The Executive Director of the World Food Programme (WFP), David Beasley, is today travelling to West Africa, where more than five million people in six countries of the Sahel region – Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania, Niger and Senegal – could go hungry this year.

“In the Sahel, low rainfall has hurt harvests and reduced fodder and water for livestock, making lives harder for people there. WFP is working actively to help, and I am looking forward to meeting with the leaders of Senegal, Mali and Niger to reinforce our commitment to support their response plans. Our work in this region also includes long-term programs that help communities help themselves, and I am looking forward to meeting men, women and children who are participating in these efforts.”

WFP urgently requires $165 million to meet the needs of 3.5 million people during the lean season. WFP is also working with partners and national governments on plans to scale up resilience to create jobs for young people; rehabilitate land and restore ecosystems; and invest in health, nutrition and education for a sustainable future.

Beasley is visiting Senegal, Mali and Niger from May 17-22, 2018.

News video package and photo material is expected to be ready on 23 May. If interested please contact Jonathan.Dumont@wfp.org or George.Fominyen@wfp.org.

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For more information, please contact (email address: firstname.lastname@wfp.org):

George Fominyen, WFP/Dakar, Tel. +221 338496500, Mob. +221776394271
Jane Howard, WFP/Rome, Tel. +39 06 6513 2321, Mob. +39 346 7600521
Francis Mwanza, WFP/London, Tel.  +44 20 3857 7411, Mob. +44 7968 008 474
Challiss McDonough, WFP/Washington, Tel. +1-202-653-1149, Mob. +1-202-774-4026
Steve Taravella, WFP/New York, Tel. +1-646-556-6909, Mob.  +1-202-770-5993