Skip to main content

World Food Program Donates US$ 98 Million to Indonesia

Coordinating Minister for People's Welfare, Aburizal Bakrie, and the World Food Program (WFP) signed a Memorandum of Understanding for food assistance yesterday. The agreement is aimed to help and rehabilitate the nutrition in Indonesia by extending the assistance and restoration program.


The agreement will be ongoing for three years until December 2010 with total funding of US$ 98 billion, including US$ 56 million for food and US$ 42 million for operational costs.The funding will be to improve nutrition for ages 24-60 months; pregnant women; breast-feeding mothers, and children aged 6-13 years old, and provide additional food for tuberculosis patients and poor families. The funding is also aimed at and sanitation and government assistance for natural disasters. "There is total of 845 million people that will benefit from this program," said Aburizal, accompanied by WFP Director for Indonesia, Angela van Rynbach.The effort to overcome starvation and malnutrition is one phase to achieve the Millenium Development Goals (MDG's). "Sufficient food is important to alleviate poverty," he said.


The food commodities will be distributed to three provinces of West Nusa Tenggara, East Nusa Tenggara, and East Java. The commodities contain rice (58,432 tons), cooking oil (2,484 tons), biscuits (15,524 tons), instant noodles (6,764 tons), and wheat (42,137 tons).The first phase of the program that goes through March, has been focused on malnutrition prevention, food rehabilitation for pregnant and breast-feeding women, recovery for TB patients, sufficient food in poor areas, and capacity building for related institutions.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

If Soeharto became National Hero

Three short years after his death, Indonesia's dictator Suharto has been   nominated to a shortlist to be designated a "National Hero." The final decision   rests with President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono. and any honors will likely be   announced on November 10, Heroes’ Day. President Obama is scheduled to visit  Indonesia around that date.  After Suharto died in January 2008, Indonesia's former dictator General Suharto   has died in bed and not in jail, escaping justice for his numerous crimes in   East Timor and throughout the Indonesian archipelago. One of the worst mass   murderers of the 20th century, his death tolls still shock... We cannot forget that the United States government consistently supported   Suharto and his regime. As the corpses piled up after his coup and darkness   descended on Indonesia, his cheerleaders in the U.S. welcomed the "gleam of   light in Asia." In the pursuit of realpolitik, U.S. administration a...

MUI Says Al-Qiyadah Al-Islamiyah is Misleading

The Indonesian Ulemas Council (MUI) said Al-Qiyadah al-Islamiyah, which first appeared in 2000, is a misleading sect. The decision was taken after MUI researched the organization for the last three months."Up to 2006, this sect wasn't brave enough to appear. But starting in 2007, they bluntly spread their lessons to the public," MUI Chairman, K.H. Ma'ruf, told the press yesterday (4/10). For a sect that is only seven years old, he viewed, its progress is rapid. The structure is in order and the leaders easily attract public sympathy. Al-Qiyadah's leader, Ahmad Moshaddeq, whose real name is Haji Salam, said he was an apostle since July 23, 2007 after ascetic meditation for 40 days and nights in Bunder Mount, Bogor, West Java. "They even changed Islam to existing apostle or prophet after Muhammad, that is Masih Al-Mau'ud," said Ma'ruf.For gaining devotees, according to Ma'ruf, Ahmad promised rewards of a motorcycle for those who can recruit 40 ...

Blasphemy in the name of religion

The Asian Legal Resource Centre (ALRC) wishes to bring the attention of the Human Rights Council (HRC) to violations of the right to the freedom of expression and opinion that are being engendered through the use of Indonesia’s legal provisions prohibiting blasphemy. Religious blasphemy is prohibited in Indonesia under Law No. 1/PNPS/1965, with such provisions also being later adopted within the Penal Code (KUHP) under Article 156a. Paragraph (a) of this article uses vague language, which opens the door to abusive uses of this provision, to prohibit any acts and expression of views considered to be blasphemous, and carries a maximum punishment of five years imprisonment. A similar maximum punishment is also carried by paragraph (b) of the article, which prohibits any acts and expression of views calling for others to embrace atheism. Alexander Aan is an atheist currently undergoing a trial at the Muaro Sijunjung District Court, West Sumatra. According to his lawyers from ...