KS relief, UN agency join forces in nutrition drive across developing world

Since COVID-19 has amplified the hardships faced by the world’s most vulnerable people, there have been many who are also now experiencing an increase in hunger and poverty. The organizations will draw on their respective expertise and share knowledge to address malnutrition and hunger. This is said to be an agreement between Saudi Arabia and IFAD. This is meant to be an extended step to further strengthen the partnership.

Dr Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz Al-Rabeeah, adviser at the Saudi Royal Court and supervisor general at KSrelief, and Gilbert F. Houngbo, President of IFAD, signed a cooperation agreement at the UN agency’s headquarters in Rome to respond with concrete action to escalating hunger and malnutrition around the world that has resulted from the COVID-19 pandemic. Both organizations share a mission to alleviate poverty and hunger. As part of the agreement, they will draw on their respective expertise and reach, and share knowledge to jointly address malnutrition and hunger. This includes collaborating on the strategy, design and implementation of projects in impoverished countries, including Somalia, Syria and Yemen.

Al-Rabeeah further adds this humanitarian step will build a wide network of partnerships aiming to alleviate the suffering of those in need. This is a collaborative opportunity to ensure that people living in the direst situations can sustainably grow, market and consume enough nutritious food.

In 2019, around 135 million people across 55 countries experienced acute food insecurity, which required urgent food, nutrition, and livelihoods assistance for survival. The UN’s International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the King Salman Humanitarian Aid and ‎Relief Center (KSrelief) have joined forces to deliver sustainable access to nutritious food in the world’s most impoverished countries amid the COVID-19 pandemic.