The African Development Bank (AfDB) Group and the World Food Programme (WFP) will organize, on 20 January 2010, a High Level Technical Meeting in Tunis to discuss past and on-going cooperation between the two organizations, as well as opportunities for consolidating partnership. "The global food and financial crises, the state of continental agriculture and food security, as well as the current strategic directions and decentralization efforts of the Bank and WFP have heightened the need for innovation in development cooperation between both institutions", said Mr Aly Abou-Sabaa, AfDB Director for Agriculture and Agro-industry Department.
The first Cooperation Agreement between the WFP and the AfDB was signed on 2 August 1991, with the purpose of providing a cooperation framework and facilitating collaboration in harmonizing food aid for development and promoting agricultural and rural development in affected regional member countries.
Since 2000, the Bank Group has approved at least 70 emergency humanitarian relief assistance operations, for a total grant exceeding US$ 45 million in 45 countries. About 60% of these operations have been executed by WFP for food distribution.
The High Level Technical Meeting is a follow-up to the December 2009 meeting held between the AfDB President and the WFP Executive Director in Copenhagen, Denmark.
Contacts
Yolanda Nunes Correia
