Food For Progress (FFP) and McGovern Dole International Food for Education and Child Nutrition Program: United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) commits $52.5 million to support food security in Burundi
October 30, 2022
Bujumbura, Burundi, October 30, 2022- The Embassy of the United States in Bujumbura announces the U.S. Department of Agriculture award to Burundi of $23.5 million for the Food for Progress Program and $29 million for the McGovern Dole International Food for Education and Child Nutrition Programs. These initiatives will support agriculture, trade, food security, and nutrition education in Burundi over the next five years.
The United States is deeply committed to ending hunger and malnutrition and building more sustainable, equitable, and resilient food systems at home and abroad. The United States is the largest provider of international agriculture, economic development, and humanitarian assistance, and advances global food security and nutrition through efforts like the U.S. government’s FFP and McGovern-Dole Programs.
The FFP program helps support agriculture, trade, and food security around the globe. Partners working together will build more equitable and resilient food systems. Through this program, the United States aims to improve the livelihoods of coffee-producing households in Burundi, strengthen production capacity in the coffee sector, and combat food insecurity among farmers while enhancing their ability to mitigate and adapt to climate change.
The McGovern-Dole International Food for Education and Child Nutrition Program helps support education, child development, and food security in low-income, food-deficit countries around the globe. The program provides for the donation of U.S. agricultural commodities, as well as financial and technical assistance, to support school feeding and maternal and child nutrition projects.
In Burundi, the FFP will be implemented by the technical partner, TechnoServe, and is projected to benefit 60,000 Burundian families living in areas that have been threatened by ecological change and limited economic growth. The McGovern-Dole program will be implemented by the NGO partner, Catholic Relief Services, and is projected to benefit 80,651 beneficiaries in Ruyigi province through education and child nutrition programs.
As the world emerges from a global pandemic and faces the challenges of rising hunger and poverty, climate change, and the raging war on Ukraine, more than 160 million people worldwide experience acute food insecurity. The issue of food security has grown even more urgent, and the effects of food insecurity are widespread and devastating. When there is food insecurity, farmers lose their livelihoods. Parents spend hours every day trying to secure their family’s next meal. Hungry children struggle to learn, and they suffer irreversible health consequences. Already vulnerable populations are always hit hardest, and food insecurity also holds back broader economic growth and increases the risk of violent conflict and civil unrest. ###
For additional information, please visit:
https://www.fas.usda.gov/programs/mcgovern-dole-food-education-program