Germany Increases Aid to Niger

The German Foreign Ministry has earmarked a further one million euros for the African country of Niger which has been struck by a severe food crisis. The money is meant for aid projects run by German non-governmental organizations, in particular for those focusing on saving children and old people from starvation, the foreign ministry said in Berlin Tuesday. In addition, German Aid and Development Minister Heidemarie Wieczorek-Zeul pledged a further 400,000 euros for the German chapter of Red Cross to boost its humanitarian work in Niger. According to the foreign ministry, 3.6 million people in Niger are threatened with starvation. The German aid money is also aimed to support the work of international aid groups, including UNICEF, which wants to care for some 32,000 severely-malnourished children in the region. Since June this year, the German federal ministry for economic cooperation and development has already released 1.9 million euros in immediate humanitarian aid for the drought-struck African country.