The executive director of the World Food Program (WFP), David Beasley, concluded his visit to Venezuela on Tuesday after meeting with President Nicolás Maduro to support greater coverage of the feeding program and help one million children in the Latin American country.
In his meeting with Maduro, which took place at the Miraflores Palace, the seat of the Venezuelan government and was attended by the President of the National Assembly, Jorge Rodríguez, both expressed their intention to strengthen the strategic plans for collaboration between the parties.
«Through joint work and cooperation between our Government and the UN, we are determined to advance in agreements that guarantee the right to food of the Venezuelan people,» Maduro has indicated in a message on his Twitter profile.
As part of his visit, Beasley visited several schools in Araya, in the Venezuelan state of Sucre, where he had the opportunity to meet with teachers, families and students, as well as local representatives, according to a statement from the organization itself.
«The people of Araya told me that our school feeding program has made a big difference in their lives. They can stretch their income even further to cover other daily essentials knowing that their children are guaranteed a healthy meal every day at school,» Beasley said.
WFP began operations in Venezuela in April 2021 with the signing of a memorandum of understanding with the Venezuelan government that has benefited more than 430,000 children through food rations delivered to school children and their families in eight states.
The agency, which expects to increase its action in the country to reach one million school-age children, has also been distributing food to close to 20,000 people affected by recent heavy rains and floods in four Venezuelan states.