World Food Programme

By Alan Fisher in Africa on August 16th, 2010
Photo by AFP

Two weeks today - it's Monday here in London - I returned from Niger. Al Jazeera had begun carrying a series of reports from the country which warned that the severe hunger in the country was at risk of tipping into a full blown famine.

We visited the more fertile south and saw the problems there, and we visited the north - accompanied by an army patrol because of security issues - and saw the real hardships for villagers across the region.

People were warning us that things were as bad as they had ever been, that this was much worse than the conditions that brought the terrible famine of 2005.

The United Nation's World Food Programme now officially backs what the people told us.  They say half the country's population, 7.3 million people - are in desperate need of food.

By Rob Reynolds in Americas on February 7th, 2010
AFP photo

On Saturday February 6, I returned to Port-au-Prince after an absence of 10 days. I found some things have changed, with some positive signs indicating more aid is flowing and the very first steps towards recovery are under way.

But there are far too many things which appear to have remained the same - or even gotten worse.

Food aid is getting out to more and more hungry and homeless Haitian people. The World Food Programme says 1.8 million people have received food aid, out of a total population of two million in need.

In the makeshift tent camps that have sprung up everywhere in the city there are signs of food in greater abundance - rice especially.

Women-only coupons

A new system of organising food distributions through coupons given only to women has made a difference.

By Omar Chatriwala in Americas on January 17th, 2010

Share your videos about the catastrophe with Al Jazeera
Days after a 7.0 magnitude earthquake devastated Haiti, relief workers are still struggling to help thousands of people affected.

As international organisations rush to contain a developing humanitarian crisis, Al Jazeera has teams in and around  Port-au-Prince, the Haitian capital, covering the story as it unfolds. The following are some of the video reports they've filed.

By Omar Chatriwala in Americas on January 13th, 2010
Photo by Carel Pedre via Twitter

At 21:53GMT on Tuesday, the Caribbean nation of Haiti was hit by its strongest earthquake in more than 200 years, causing what is being described as "a catastrophe of major proportions".

Heavy casualties are feared after numerous buildings were levelled by the 7.0 magnitude earthquake.

This blog post, previously named "Haiti Earthquake: Latest updates", followed events in the immediate aftermath of quake.

Update | Latest blog posts:

By James Bays in Asia on October 28th, 2009
Photo by AFP

I know the street where the latest attack took place well. It is close to the site of the former Al Jazeera bureau, where I first worked for this network four years ago.

It seems likely that the Taliban knew there were UN workers staying in the guesthouse and that they were deliberately targeted.

The Taliban does not see the UN as a neutral player. It has direct involvement supporting the election process, and NATO's International Security Force operates under a UN mandate.

Of course, many UN workers are doing humanitarian work that has nothing to do with politics or the military. For example, UN agencies, like the World Food Programme and the UNHCR, are feeding the starving and sheltering the displaced.

The attack is bound to change the way foreigners operate in the Afghan capital and the way they interact with Afghans on a daily basis.

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