Agriculture Minister Song Mi-ryung met with World Food Programme (WFP) Executive Director Cindy McCain on Tuesday to discuss ways to expand humanitarian food aid and other relief projects, the agricultural ministry said.

Song held the meeting with McCain in Seoul as South Korea recently announced plans to play a larger role in addressing global hunger, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs.

Since 2018, South Korea has been donating 50,000 tons of rice annually to the WFP. The contribution was increased to 100,000 tons this year, which is distributed to 11 countries, including Bangladesh, Afghanistan and Uganda.

During the meeting, McCain highlighted South Korea’s transformation from a recipient of international food aid to a donor and added that Seoul’s contributions would serve as hope for overcoming global hunger.

“The agricultural ministry will continue to work closely with the WFP down the road,” Song also said.

South Korea and the WFP agreed to cooperate on school food pr
ojects in Somalia, Laos and Guinea as well.

South Korea also expressed its intention to participate in the School Meals Coalition, an initiative aimed at improving the quality of food provided to students, which currently includes 98 nations, the ministry added.

Source: Yonhap News Agency