FE Report

The European Commission (EC) Monday adopted a € 314 million package of projects to support agriculture and improve the food security situation in 23 developing countries including Bangladesh.

This is the first financing decision in the framework of the € 1 billion Food Facility which was adopted at the end of last year in response to the growing food security problems faced by many developing countries, says a press release.

The Commission also agreed to an overall plan for utilising the entire amount of the Facility, targetting 50 developing countries.

Louis Michel, Commissioner responsible for Development and Humanitarian Aid, said: "Europe has already made humanitarian responses to the food crisis through emergency aid."

"The 'Food Facility' is the development response - €1 billion over 3 years to get agriculture back on its feet. The package adopted today targets the 23 countries worst hit. This is a response to the food crisis which is already hitting developing countries," he added.

Of Asian countries, the current financing decision by the Brussels-based body will go to Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Pakistan, Palestine and the Philippines.

African nations included on the list are, among others, DR Congo, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mozambique, Sierra Leone and Zimbabwe.

"Over the months ahead, we must not forget the impact that the financial crisis and economic downturn will have on developing countries - this is only now becoming clear and could be much worse than expected. Europe is quite rightly focused on recovery plans for our own economy. That should not in any way diminish our commitment to developing countries - as decisions like this one taken today clearly show," the commissioner said

Last year, the European Parliament and the Council adopted a Regulation establishing the € 1 billion 'Food Facility', which constitutes the main EU response to the worsening global food security situation in 2007/08.