São Paulo – From January to November this year, four Arab countries have received 11,500 tons of foodstuffs donated by Brazil’s National Supply Company (Conab). According to data from the period released by Conab this Tuesday (30th), from January to November, 42,900 tons of food were donated, mostly to communities within Brazil.
Out of Conab’s donations, 12,100 tons went to international humanitarian aid. The bulk of these went to Arab countries. Conab data says Gaza received 7,071 tons, the West Bank got 452 tons, Lebanon got 795 tons and Syria received 2,451 tons. Jordan benefited from 731 tons of food. Nicaragua, in Central America, was given 600 tons.
The West Bank and Gaza, in Palestine, is in conflict with Israel this year and in Syria government forces and rebels are clashing since 2011. Lebanon and Jordan have accommodated large numbers of Syrian refugees and required international aid as a result.
In Brazil, 30,800 tons of foodstuffs were delivered to populations plagued by food insecurity. Settlement residents got 11,537 tons; quilombo (slave descendant community) dwellers got 4,871 tons; people in rural areas near farms got 1,923 tons; indigenous communities got 6.350 tons; people in dam areas got 2,117 tons; artisanal fishermen got 329 tons; and victims of calamities got 646 tons. Other communities got 3,101 tons. According to Conab, 351,000 families received donations in Brazil.
The donations are organized by Coordenação Geral de Ações Internacionais de Combate à Fome (Cgfome), the Ministry of External Relations’ general coordination office of international actions for fighting hunger. Conab, for its part, acquires the foodstuffs, stores it and takes part in distribution.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
