WFP assists Indonesia

WFP assists Indonesia

ROME (Reuters): The UN's World Food Program yesterday launched a $88 million appeal for emergency aid to help avert major shortages in Indonesia, which has been hit by severe drought and Asia's economic crisis.

"We ask the international community to act now to prevent the present food shortage from developing into a major food crisis," WFP Executive Director Catherine Bertini said in a statement.

The Rome-based agency said it was seeking to provide 225,000 tons of rice and blended foods to feed approximately 4.6 million of the most vulnerable Indonesians, including pregnant women, nursing mothers, children under five and families who only have enough food for one meal a day, the statement said.

WFP will also run some food-for-work programs, said its appeal.