USAID charters two cargo planes for food aid delivery to Niger

USAID charters two cargo planes for food aid delivery to Niger    The U.S. Agency for International Development will charter two cargo planes Friday to transport 206 metric tons of special high-energy food aid from Vatry, France, to Niamey, Niger.
   The aid, valued at $427,500, is part of ongoing U.S. famine relief in Niger. The food will be distributed by the United Nations Children’s Fund and should feed more than 34,000 children, USAID said.
   The announcement marks the second time in the Niger famine that USAID has airlifted special food for UNICEF. On July 18, USAID used a cargo plane to ship 45 metric tons of high energy food aid from Brussels to Niamey at a cost of $116,000.
   The airlifts raise the total amount of U.S. support to fight famine in Niger in 2005 to about $13.75 million, USAID said.