Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
World Food Program Wins Nobel Peace Prize For Fighting Global Hunger
The New York Times: 2020 Nobel Peace Prize Awarded To U.N. World Food Program
The World Food Program, a United Nations agency, was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday for its efforts to combat hunger globally and lay the foundations for peace in nations devastated by war, the Nobel committee announced. The organization was recognized for its work during a coronavirus pandemic that has “contributed to a strong upsurge in the number of victims of hunger in the world,” the committee said in a statement. The United Nations body — the largest humanitarian organization addressing hunger and promoting food security internationally — last year provided assistance to nearly one million people in 88 countries. (Specia, 10/9)
The Wall Street Journal: Nobel Peace Prize Is Awarded To The World Food Program
The WFP responded on Twitter to the award by calling it “a powerful reminder to the world that peace and #ZeroHunger go hand-in-hand.” Its executive director David Beasley, previously noted in 2017 that the WFP’s efforts also boosted the U.S.’s own long-term security interests in some of the most volatile parts of the world. “Humanitarian assistance—especially the food aid distributed by the U.N. World Food Program—is one way to combat extremists,” he wrote. “This is my message to President Trump and his friends and allies. Proposed massive cuts to food assistance would do long-term harm to our national security interests.” (Hookway, 10/9)
The Washington Post: Nobel Peace Prize Goes To World Food Program For Efforts To Combat Hunger
The award is an acknowledgment of the central role the Rome-based organization plays in dealing with impoverished people caught in or fleeing from conflict. The WFP, which was established in 1961, has become the primary international organization for people dealing with hunger — at a time when climate change and prolonged conflicts in the Middle East and Africa are exacerbating the challenge. Millions in Syria and Yemen depend each month on the WFP for survival. The organization says that more than 800 million people are chronically hungry, most of them living in conflict-stricken areas. (Birnbaum and Harlan, 10/9)
Also —
CNN: How You Can Help Fight The Hunger Crisis Resulting From The Covid-19 Pandemic
The coronavirus is leading to a secondary pandemic -- hunger. The need for emergency food has exploded since March of 2020. According to an Oxfam report, this hunger crisis could soon kill more people each day than the infection itself. (Lee, 10/6)
