The head of the UN food agency Friday voiced "alarm" over underfunding for the agricultural element of the United Nations' emergency appeal for earthquake-stricken Haiti.
"At a time when Haiti is facing a major food crisis, we are alarmed at the lack of support to the agricultural component of the Flash Appeal," FAO Director-General Jacques Diouf told a conference on food security for Haiti.
He said that of 23 million dollars (17 million euros) sought for immediate agricultural needs, the Rome-based Food and Agriculture Organisation has so far received only a fraction — eight percent.
The overall appeal launched after the quake a month ago Friday was for 575 million dollars.
Diouf was speaking at a conference in Rome attended by his counterparts from the other Rome-based UN food agencies — the World Food Programme (WFP) and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) — as well as Haitian Agriculture Minister Joanas Gue.
"The economic and social reconstruction of Haiti requires a revival of food production and massive investment in rural areas," Diouf said.
"The immediate priority is support for the farm season that begins in March and accounts for more than 60 percent of the country's food production," he added.
"If we miss the harvest we will have a (dire) food security situation," said WFP Executive Director Josette Sheeran, vowing support for the Haitian government's efforts "to get Haitians back to work and back to food self-sufficiency."
Gue, for his part, said he could summarise Haiti's medium-term needs in "three phrases: food security, revenue generation and job creation," noting that some 40,000 people were seeking work.
Diouf announced a joint task-force of the three UN food agencies to support the Haitian government's efforts to revive the agricultural sector.
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