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Improving the Nutritional Status of Refugees through donations |Nestlé

Nestlé has provided a quantity of relief items worth 20 million CFA to the Malian government for onward distribution to persons displaced by the recent conflict in that country in a bid to improve their nutritional status.
 
The items included 400 cases of NIDO (402g); 149 cases of CERELAC Wheat (400g); 126 cases of CERELAC 3 Fruits (400g); 148 cases of MAGGI tablets (10g); and 217 cases of NESCAFÉ Breakfast (32g).
 
The food products are intended to provide succor to the refugees who remained in camps as the world works with the government to bring the conflict to an end.
 
The items were ferried to the Malian Ministry of Humanitarian Action in two trucks on Thursday, April 11, 2013, to thunderous applause from some of the beneficiaries. 
 
Presenting the items, Country Manager for the Savanna Cluster, Giacomo Chiocca, reiterated the commitment of Nestlé to offer support to the Malian Government to meet the nutritional needs of the people.
 
“We wish that Malians find peace in their hearts and minds and that the country quickly resume the path of development for the good of all Malians ”, he added.
 
Nestlé has been operating in Mali for the past 40 years in the agro-food sector through its partners SOMAKOFF and KOUMALIM. Since 2010, Nestlé established an operating company in Mali.
 
Receiving the items, Malian Minister for Humanitarian Action, Solidarity and Old People, Dr Mamadou Sidibé, commended  the company for having his country at heart, contributing to ameliorating  the conditions of the refugees.
 
“It is a real pleasure for us to receive this grant, and the timing could not be better. What inspires me about this donation is the great spirit of solidarity behind it. We consider this as a gesture of solidarity, but also of friendship and compassion for these people (the refugees) who are in a difficult situation".
 
Present at the ceremony were the General Business Manager of Nestlé Mali, Saliou Barry; the Deputy Representative of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation in Mali, Giorgio Dhima; as well as the Managing Director of KOUMALIM, Hamadaou Sylla; and his counterpart the Managing Director of SOMAKOFF, Oumar KOUMA.
 
Mali has been in the throes over the past  one year, following the outbreak of conflict in the northern part of the country. 
 
International humanitarian organizations providing support to victims cite the lack of basic needs, especially in the areas of food, as among the topmost challenges facing the internally displaced persons.
 
The Nestlé donation would help fill up some of those gaps, complementing  the efforts of the humanitarian agencies.  
 
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