United States provides an additional 2.5 million dollars to feed hundreds of thousands of at risk Malagasy

Antananarivo - Worsening conditions in the south of Madagascar have led the United States to provide additional emergency food assistance to Mada-gascar valued at over 2.5 million dollars to help avert a humanitarian crisis in the South. Over 200,000 people will receive food support thanks to this additional assistance. This supplemental contribution comes only a few months after American aid was increased by over a million and a half dollars to stem the effects of a two-year long drought in the southern region of Madagascar. According to Mr. Rudolph Thomas, the Director of the USAID/Madagascar Mission, this is an unprecedented American response to a humanitarian situation in Madagascar. "We have seen the situation getting worse since October," com-mented Mr. Thomas. "Increasing numbers of people hardest hit by the drought in the south have had to resort to eating cactus to survive.

This American assistance will help a large population in 53 communes survive the hungry season." Ms. Krystyna Bednarska, the World Food Program's (WFP) Represen-tative in Madagascar, joined Mr. Thomas at a press conference at the American Embassy in Antananarivo this morning to announce the additional assistance. The World Food Program will receive and distribute the US donated food, which totals over 3,700 tons.

She thanked the American government for its strong commitment to address this issue and said the aid will go to those communities most in need in order to help them survive the next few months.

In the past year, the United States provided over $85 billion in assistance for public health and food security programs reaching millions of Malagasy throughout the country, making the US Government the largest bilateral donor for 2010.