Belgium supports FAO emergency response capacity with €5.8 million

Staff writer ▼ | December 4, 2014

Belgium has donated €5.8 million to support FAO activities that help protect agriculture-based livelihoods for food security and resilience in the face of natural disasters and human-induced crises.

Donation Natural disasters and human-induced crises

The donation to FAO's Special Fund for Emergency and Rehabilitation Activities (SFERA) enables FAO to rapidly acquire agricultural inputs -like quality seeds, fertilizer and tools - and quickly launch field activities to protect agriculture livelihoods, reboot agricultural production, and safeguard food security.

SFERA was created in 2004 to enhance FAO's capacity to respond quickly and flexibly to emergency situations and humanitarian crises via the rapid release of funds before specific donor agreements are signed. Today, the fund has leveraged over $170 million to this end.

Since inception of SFERA, Belgium has donated over $30 million to support food security projects in emergencies, making it the top donor to the fund to date and one of the most rapid and proactive donors for agriculture and food security. ■