Canberra [Australia], May 29: The Australian government has announced a funding boost for famine relief efforts in Africa and the Middle East.
Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong on Monday said the government will contribute 29 million Australian dollars (18.9 million U.S. dollars) from the Humanitarian Emergency Fund to respond to the growing food security crisis and to assist vulnerable people in the Middle East and Africa.
More than half the funding will go toward addressing the humanitarian, displacement and protection needs of people in drought-affected areas in Kenya, Ethiopia and Somalia, with the rest for food support in Yemen, Lebanon and Jordan.
According to the federal government, the number of people globally at risk of acute food insecurity has increased to 350 million since the COVID-19 pandemic.
Source: Xinhua