HELSINKI - The U.N. World Food Programme (WFP) has welcomed a generous contribution of  euros 29 million from the Government of Finland. The contribution, distributed within four years, will support WFP’s life-saving humanitarian work in countries gripped by crises, as well as those struggling with hunger beyond the media spotlight.

 A multi-year funding commitment was announced during a recent two-day visit to Finland by Ertharin Cousin, WFP’s Executive Director, who emphasized the critical importance of this flexible and reliable funding for the organization, which depends entirely on voluntary donations.

                                              
“Finland stands out among our partners, providing an example of good humanitarian donorship,” Cousin said after meeting leading members of government and civil society.  “The importance of predictable and flexible contributions cannot be overstated. It is absolutely crucial. WFP depends on these funds which ensure our ability to respond quickly and innovatively in various emergencies. Finland enables WFP to meet the increasing needs of the poorest and most vulnerable – as they deserve, and the world expects.”

Finland’s support is vital to WFP’s current emergency operations in conflict-affected South Sudan, the Central African Republic, Iraq, Syria and Gaza, as well as in countries affected by Ebola in West Africa. 

WFP adapts the delivery of food assistance according to the situation on the ground, for instance by using e-cards or vouchers when markets are functioning instead of in-kind food distributions. This type of flexible response, provided with Finnish support, is welcomed by recipients such as Syrian refugees in Lebanon or Jordan because it offers them a choice of fresh foods and a sense of normality. At the same time, the economies of host communities benefit through increased trade.

“An unusually difficult situation in the Middle East and in several countries in Africa have increased the need for assistance to an unprecedented level,” said Pekka Haavisto, Finland’s International Development Minister. “WFP is irreplaceable in this context, and in many other humanitarian crises.”

Finland also supports countries affected by climate change, such as Ethiopia, which receives assistance through resilience building programmes that enable farmers to save, diversify their livelihoods, create assets and insure against drought. 

The announcement of the contribution coincided with the annual conference in Helsinki, “Towards a global agenda for sustainable development post 2015” opened by Minister Haavisto and addressed by Executive Director Cousin. 

While in Finland, Cousin met with Development Minister Pekka Haavisto, former Presidents Tarja Halonen, and Martti Ahtisaari, and Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Timo Soini as well as with representatives of non-governmental organizations, academia and other social organizations.

 WFP, based in Rome, is the world's largest humanitarian agency fighting hunger worldwide, delivering food in emergencies and working with communities to build resilience. In 2013, WFP assisted more than 80 million people in 75 countries.