USAID adds 30,000 metric tons of food aid to Sudan relief effort

USAID adds 30,000 metric tons of food aid to Sudan relief effort       The U.S. Agency for International Development will contribute another 30,000 metric tons of emergency food aid to the World Food Program relief effort in war-torn Sudan.
   The announcement follows a ceasefire between the Sudanese government and rebels from the Sudan Liberation Movement and the Justice and Equality Movement, which includes a pledge to guarantee safe passage of food aid to Darfur, Sudan.
   According to the agency, this latest round of food aid to Sudan is valued at $27.1 million. USAID said it plans to make the delivery to Darfur in late May “in advance of the rainy season when logistical access to vulnerable populations will be greatly restricted.”
   This contribution brings the total USAID contribution to the World Food Program in Darfur since October 2003 to about 74,000 metric tons of mixed food commodities worth about $67 million. In addition, USAID also contributed about 7,000 metric tons of food aid, valued at $4.8 million, for the World Food Program in eastern Chad.