Know Your Organization

Know Your Organization - WFP

Bankers Guru

The World Food Programme (WFP; French: Programme Alimentaire Mondial; Italian: Programma Alimentare Mondiale; Spanish: Programa Mundial de Alimentos) is the food assistance branch of the United Nations and the world's largest humanitarian organization addressing hunger and promoting food security.On average, the WFP provides food assistance to 80 million people in 75 countries each year.From its headquarters in Rome and more than 80 country offices around the world, the WFP works to help people who are unable to produce or obtain enough food for themselves and their families. It is a member of the United Nations Development Group and part of its Executive Committee.

WFP was first established in 1961 after the 1960 Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) Conference, when George McGovern, director of the US Food for Peace Programmes, proposed establishing a multilateral food aid programme. The WFP was formally established in 1963 by the FAO and the United Nations General Assembly on a three-year experimental basis. In 1965, the programme was extended to a continuing basis.

The WFP is governed by an Executive Board which consists of representatives from 36 member states. Ertharin Cousin is the current Executive Director, appointed jointly by the UN Secretary General and the Director-General of the FAO for a five-year term. She heads the Secretariat of the WFP.The European Union is a permanent observer in the WFP and, as a major donor, participates in the work of its Executive Board.

Its vision is a "world in which every man, woman and child has access at all times to the food needed for an active and healthy life."

The WFP has a staff of about 11,500 people, the majority of whom work in remote areas.