UN Secretary General Kofi Annan arrived Tuesday in Niger to assess the impact of devastating famine in one of the world's poorest countries, and discuss measures on tackling it. Annan began his two-day visit by flying to Niger's second city, Zinder, in the south of the largely desert west African country, where President Mamadou Tandja was on hand to greet him with a range of aid staff, an AFP correspondent said.
"I have come here to see for myself what is happening and to discuss with the president and the prime minister (Hama Amadou) what we can do all together in the medium and long-term," said the United Nations' chief executive, speaking in French.
He went to the paediatric service of Zinder hospital where starving children are treated, and was then due at a nutrition centre run by Medecins sans Frontieres (MSF - Doctors without Borders) in a village called Madara.
MSF, a French-based specialist charity, was among bodies to draw the world's attention to the scale of the humanitarian disaster affecting millions, but has also accused UN agencies of failing to meet the challenge with enough food or delivering such as donors have funded according to the right priorities.
"I had the chance to talk to mothers and their children," Annan said after leaving the MSF facility. "I was very happy to visit this centre, the work is very valuable and they deserve to be given support."
The UN estimates more than 2.5 million people face "a vulnerable situation" in Niger itself, including 32,000 children in "deadly danger" from starvation caused by drought, bad harvests, poverty, desertification and locust attacks.
Annan, a Ghanaian who arrived accompanied by his wife, was met by officials of the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), its World Food Programme (WFP), the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF). After Wednesday's series of co-ordination meetings, Annan is due to give a news conference in Niamey before leaving in the afternoon.
Comments
Comments are closed.