Business & Money | Thursday 17 August, 2017 5:34 am |

PepsiCo, the global food and beverage company and its partner, African Bottling Operations, have made a contribution of US$250,00 to the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) to help provide critical assistance to thousands of Libyans who face food insecurity.

 

“With so many people in desperate need in Libya and around the world, we feel that it is our responsibility to provide whatever support we can to help alleviate their situation,” said Omar Farid, President of PepsiCo Middle East and Africa. “PepsiCo is focused on delivering sustainable long-term growth while leaving a positive imprint on society and the environment – inclusive of supporting WFP’s disaster relief in the Middle East region, this what we call Performance with Purpose. PepsiCo has partnered with the United Nations World Food Program for almost a decade, as a core component of our commitment to the local  community. There is considerable work that can be done to provide more support to those who need it, and we encourage our peers in the corporate world to extend their goodwill towards noble causes.”

 

“Over one million people in Libya are in urgent need of humanitarian assistance,” said WFP Libya Country Director, Wagdi Othman. “With food insecurity on the rise, people often have to resort to cutting meals, taking their children out of school or cutting healthcare expenses. This timely contribution from PepsiCo and its partner, African Bottling Operations, is a vital step in easing the worsening food shortages affecting many vulnerable families.”

WFP will use this humanitarian donation from PepsiCo and African Bottling Operations to deliver food rations to more than 17,000 people in Libya. Each ration provides a family of five people with a month’s supply of rice, pasta, wheat flour, chickpeas, vegetable oil, sugar and tomato paste.

In 2017, WFP aims to assist 175,000 Libyans affected by food insecurity. Priority is given to the most vulnerable families, especially internally displaced people, returnees and refugees, as well as households headed by unemployed women.

 

The humanitarian situation in Libya continues to deteriorate as a result of  instability and disruption of markets and local food production, all of which negatively affect families’ livelihoods and their ability to meet basic needs, including food. WFP urgently requires US$8.7 million to continue its food assistance in Libya for the next six months. While these insecurities hinder WFP’s operations, the greatest challenge remains the lack of funding.

PepsiCo and the PepsiCo Foundation have been partners with the World Food Programme (WFP) since 2008 through initiatives that align with both PepsiCo’s Performance with Purpose Goals and WFP’s Zero Hunger mission. Partnership areas include improving the availability of affordable nutrition; providing nutritious meals to vulnerable children; supporting WFP’s disaster relief efforts worldwide; providing technical and supply chain expertise to help WFP achieve the highest standards of operability and effectiveness, and engaging employees in raising funds to provide school meals.