Media Advisory — Rohingya Pledging Conference: Multimedia Materials for Journalists and Broadcasters

Published October 22, 2017

ROME – As leaders gather for the Pledging Conference for the Rohingya Crisis in Geneva tomorrow, the Executive Director of the United Nations World Food Programme, David Beasley, called for access and resources to alleviate the suffering of more than half a million people. WFP has provided food to the 580,000 people who have flooded out of Myanmar since August 25.

“The scale of human suffering in this region is immense and heart-breaking. I have heard their stories and I have seen their wounds,” said WFP Executive Director David Beasley who visited the makeshift refugee camps of Cox’s Bazaar earlier this month.

 

“In a short amount of time, we have scaled up to help those who have fled in distress and fear. But the needs are far greater than our current resources can address, so we need the world to come together to ensure we can truly provide lifesaving food and emergency relief to these families. We also know there are thousands more inside Myanmar in northern Rakhine who need our help, and I appeal to all parties to allow us access to provide food for all those in need.”

Tomorrow, WFP’s innovative app, ShareTheMeal, will launch a campaign to raise funds worldwide to feed children who have sought refuge in Bangladesh. The ShareTheMeal app will allow users to provide Rohingya children with vital nutrition with a simple tap on their phones.  Since the app was launched, 900,000 users have donated over 16.5 million meals (over US$8 million).

Key Data:

  • WFP has provided food to about 580,000 refugees
  • 63,000 women and children under five have received specialized nutrition products
  • WFP provides rice for 50,000 hot meals a day (with partner ACF)
  • WFP needs US$77 million to feed 1 million people for the next six months

Video News Release with recent broadcast-quality material here:

View here: http://content.jwplatform.com/videos/j977vOBu-owG8ISvN.m4

Download footage and shotlist: https://spaces.hightail.com/receive/dsC82AEZUR

Hi-Res Photos available for download here: https://spaces.hightail.com/receive/iG7gVMCD9v

WFP’s ShareTheMeal  app can be downloaded here: http://ow.ly/gVPy30g0JWX

More information at sharethemeal.org or from

Katharina Weltecke, WFP/Rome, Tel. +39 06 65133108, Mob. +49 172 410 5677

Interviews with WFP staff in Bangladesh can be arranged by contacting:

Jane Howard, WFP/Rome, Tel. +39 06 65132321, Mob. +39 346 7600521

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WFP is the world’s largest humanitarian agency fighting hunger worldwide, delivering food assistance in emergencies and working with communities to improve nutrition and build resilience. Each year, WFP assists some 80 million people in around 80 countries.

Follow us on Twitter @wfp_media , @WFP_AsiaPacific

For more information please contact (email address: firstname.lastname@wfp.org):

Silke Buhr, WFP/ Bangkok, Tel. + 66 2 6598616 ext, 2160 Mob. +66(0)81-701-9208

Bettina Luescher, WFP/Geneva, Tel. +41 22 917 8564, Mob. + 41-79-842-8057

Francis Mwanza, WFP/London, Tel.  +44 20 3857 7411, Mob.  +44 7968 008474

Steve Taravella, WFP/New York, Tel. +1-646-556-6909, Mob. 1-202-770-5993