Contact: Susannah Cernojevich, American Red Cross, 202-303-4438; The American Red Cross has spokespeople available to discuss the various food programs and the recovery efforts in Ethiopia.

WASHINGTON, Oct. 16 /Standard Newswire/ -- Almost 850 million people wake up each morning, uncertain of where their next meal will come from, while nearly 20,000 poverty-stricken people don't even make it through the night. With alarming numbers falling victim to this deadly crisis, the American Red Cross is uniting with organizations around the world to recognize World Food Day and restore hope to the world's hungry.

Photo: An elementary school student enjoys a package of soymilk, provided by the Red Cross. The Education and Child Nutrition Initiative in Vietnam provides nearly 51,000 students in rural elementary schools a daily package of soymilk and a biscuit fortified with Vitamin A, Vitamin D and calcium. (Photo Credit: American Red Cross)

World Food Day 2006, committed to "Investing in Agriculture for Food Security," underscores the instability that hunger can cause in a community and urges a strengthened fight against world hunger. The American Red Cross - - together with the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (Federation) and the International Committee of the Red Cross -- has been bringing food to survivors of natural disasters, war and economic collapse around the world. The American Red Cross not only assists in short- term relief but also focuses on supporting Red Cross and Red Crescent Society partners in their efforts to work toward "food security" by investing in the repair or rehabilitation of water and sanitation infrastructure and in training communities in nutrition, sanitation and irrigation.

Ange Tingbo, Senior Food Program Advisor for the American Red Cross, stresses the need for such an integrated approach to eliminate global hunger. "By focusing on agricultural recovery, the American Red Cross ensures the community's ability to prevent, prepare and respond to a similar crisis in the future," adds Tingbo.

In response to the food crisis in southern Africa, the American Red Cross provided $1 million and three delegates to support the Federation's efforts to help communities recover from the devastation. The American Red Cross worked with the Federation on livelihood, hygiene, and clean water programs to satisfy the immediate needs of the affected populations, as well as longer- term solutions to improve food security.

Currently, the American Red Cross is responding to floods in eastern Africa that have displaced over 300,000 people in Ethiopia and affected more than 90,000 people in Sudan. The American Red Cross donated $85,000 to the Federation's Ethiopia flood response appeal and deployed two American Red Cross delegates to coordinate the Federation response and work with the Ethiopian Red Cross Society in procuring and distributing seed for local farmers to sow for next year's harvest. In Sudan, the American Red Cross is providing 10,000 insecticide treated mosquito nets.

Cash for work programs supported by the American Red Cross have contributed to the revitalization of agriculture in several tsunami-affected communities of Sri Lanka and Indonesia. These cash for work programs have focused on rehabilitating land and cleaning ditches, ponds and lagoons so that agricultural production can resume.

The American Red Cross is currently supporting two major school-nutrition programs; one in partnership with the World Food Program in Indonesia and the other with the United States Department of Agriculture in Vietnam.

The initiatives -- which are currently benefiting more than 200,000 Indonesian and 60,000 Vietnamese school children -- are unique efforts to improve the health and school performance of children by providing them with daily in-school feeding of a supplemental snack of soymilk and vitamin fortified biscuits. In addition, the programs integrate education and training to improve the academic performance of school children and the overall health of communities.

The American Red Cross reached out to thousands of people during the 2005 hurricane season, providing more than 68 million meals and snacks to survivors and emergency workers. The American Red Cross continues to address the struggle of millions suffering from chronic malnourishment and works towards ensuring that communities worldwide have access to enough diversified food to lead active and healthy lives.

You can help those affected by countless crises around the world each year by making a financial gift to the American Red Cross International Response Fund, which will provide immediate relief and long-term support through supplies, technical assistance, and other support to help those in need. Please call 1-800-RED CROSS or 1-800-257-7575 (Spanish). Contributions to the International Response Fund may be sent to your local American Red Cross chapter or to the American Red Cross International Response Fund, P.O. Box 37243, Washington, DC 20013. Internet users can make a secure online contribution by visiting www.redcross.org. The American Red Cross honors donor intent. If you wish to designate your donation to a specific disaster please do so at the time of your donation.