• by IPS Correspondents (khartoum)
• Sunday, December 18, 1994
• Inter Press Service

KHARTOUM, Dic 18 (IPS) - THE U.N. DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME (UNDP) RESIDENT REPRESENTATIVE HERE DISCLOSED THIS WEEK THE UNITED NATIONS'S PLAN TO APPEAL TO DONORS TO SUPPORT SUDAN'S DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMMES.

CHRISTOPHER JAEGER TOLD FOREIGN CORRESPONDENTS BASED IN THE SUDANESE CAPITAL THAT THE APPEAL WOULD BE LAUNCHED IN JANUARY SIMULTANEOUSLY IN GENEVA, NAIROBI, KHARTOUM AND NEW YORK.

"RELIEF PROGRAMMES TO DEVELOPING COUNTRIES HAVE PROVED A FAILURE AND U.N. AGENCIES ARE NOW TRYING TO TURN RELIEF OPERATIONS INTO DEVELOPMENT OPERATIONS," SAID THE U.N. OFFICIAL.

HE SAID THE U.N. GENERAL ASSEMBLY RECENTLY PASSED A RESOLUTION OF SUPPORTING DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMMES AND THAT SUDAN AND MANY OTHER NATIONS WILL GET SUPPORT FOR DEVELOPMENT AND END CONFLICTS.

"THE PRESENT CRISES IN ANGOLA, SOMALIA, SUDAN, RWANDA AND IN MANY OTHER THIRD WORLD COUNTRIES WILL NOT END UNLESS DEVELOPMENT IS REALISED," HE SAID.

"WE IN THE UNITED NATIONS IN SUDAN WOULD LIKE TO MOVE FROM RELIEF FOOD DISTRIBUTION TO SEEDS DISTRIBUTION. THIS IS OUR NEXT TARGET.

"FUNDS WE SPEND ON FOOD DISTRIBUTION ARE EQUAL TO FUNDS NEEDED FOR DEVELOPMENT IN THE THIRD WORLD. WE PROPOSED DEVELOPMENT BECAUSE IT WILL END CONFLICTS IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES," SAID JAEGER.

HE NOTED THAT THOSE WHO WERE GIVEN SEEDS LAST YEAR WILL AGAIN NOT ASK FOR MORE. THEREFORE, U.N. AGENCIES CAN MOVE TO DISTRIBUTE SEEDS ALONG WITH RELIEF FOOD AS AN EXPERIMENT IN SUDAN.

THE UNDP OFFICIAL, WHO COORDINATES U.N. AGENCIES HERE, URGED WESTERN COUNTRIES, WHICH ARE MAJOR AID DONORS, TO SUPPORT THE NEW STRATEGY TO SHIFT RELIEF INTO DEVELOPMENT.

HE SAID THE CURRENT OPERATION LIFE LINE SUDAN WILL CONTINUE BUT GRADUALLY THE PROGRAMME WILL CONCENTRATE MORE ON DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS.

"IF WE GIVE ONE KG OF RELIEF FOOD TO A PERSON HE WILL CONSUME IT, BUT IF YOU GIVE ONE KG OF SEEDS TO A PERSON, HE WILL PRODUCE 40 KG FOR MANY MOUTHS AND DEVELOP HIMSELF," ADDED JAEGER.

© Inter Press Service (2014) — All Rights Reserved. Original source: Inter Press Service

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