[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 210 (Friday, December 11, 2020)]
[Senate]
[Pages S7444-S7445]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




RECOGNIZING THE WORLD FOOD PROGRAMME RECIPIENT OF THE 2020 NOBEL PEACE 
                                 PRIZE

  Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, this week's Nobel Peace Prize celebration 
in Oslo, Norway, is honoring the United Nations World Food Programme 
for its efforts to combat hunger, for its contributions to bettering 
conditions for peace in conflict-affected areas and for acting as a 
driving force in efforts to prevent the use of hunger as a weapon of 
war and conflict.
  I am proud to add my voice in congratulating this deeply important 
organization and the thousands of its heroic and courageous staff on 
this well-deserved honor.
  In 1961, President Eisenhower called on the United Nations to address 
hunger, leading to the creation of the World Food Programme. Since 
then, the World Food Programme has provided lifesaving help in some of 
the world's most difficult places and conditions.
  The United States remains a strong partner of the World Food 
Programme and one of its biggest funders. During my time in the Senate, 
I joined several of my colleagues such as the late Senator Dick Lugar 
and Senator Bob Casey in strong bipartisan support for the organization 
and related efforts to combat hunger at omeand abroad.
  Today, the World Food Programme is the world's largest humanitarian 
organization and the leading global agency delivering food assistance 
in emergencies and working with communities to improve nutrition and 
build resilience. It provides more than 15 billion meals to 100 million 
people in more than 80 countries each year. Through war zones, floods, 
famines, and earthquakes, the World Food Programme is on the ground for 
those most in need, a ray of hope in the lives of the most vulnerable. 
It has truly earned recognition as ``the world's first responder,'' as 
noted by U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres.
  Like all first responders, it did not hesitate to answer the call 
when the COVID-19 pandemic hit earlier this year. The COVID-19 pandemic 
has disrupted every sector of life all over the world, adding another 
level of hardship on those in the midst of conflict and poverty and 
potentially doubling the number of people facing acute hunger to 270 
million. But since the start of this emergency, the World Food 
Programme has continued providing relief to children and families in 
the mounting crisis.
  While the need for food relief has drastically increased during the 
pandemic, hunger has long been used a tactic in conflicts around the 
world. Food supply chains are disrupted or humanitarian aid is 
restricted, essentially starving innocent civilians caught in the 
crossfire. In turn, starvation leads to more conflict over scare 
resources. The link between food insecurity and conflict is clear: one 
fuels the other. And it is also clear that helping populations with 
emergency relief and long-term sustainability prevents millions of 
people from experiencing the horrors of starvation as a tactic of war 
and conflicts from erupting out of the desperation of hunger. Not only 
is it a moral responsibility to aid the world's most vulnerable, but it 
is in the best interest of the international community for a more 
secure world.
  The World Food Programme is one of the best examples of the good that 
comes from global cooperation. From our American farmers working 
alongside farmers all over the world, to the staff on the ground, it 
takes many to help feed the world's poor. No country alone would be 
able to reach every comer of the globe, especially in the most 
entrenched of conflicts such as Yemen, Syria, and South Sudan. It is 
critical that the United States continues to support the World Food 
Programme, and I will continue to work to ensure that Congress provides 
the funds to do so.
  While the global COVID pandemic is a setback in feeding the world, I 
am confident that the World Food Programme will help lead the way to 
alleviating the suffering. I again congratulate the World Food 
Programme and all of its staff for their courageous efforts.

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