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Somalia Food Aid Bypasses Needy, U.N. Study Says [Edit]

RightinNYC

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Food Aid Bypasses Somalia?s Needy, U.N. Study Finds - NYTimes.com

As much as half the food aid sent to Somalia is diverted from needy people to a web of corrupt contractors, radical Islamist militants and local United Nations staff, according to a new Security Council report. The report, which has not yet been made public but was shown to The New York Times, outlines a host of problems so grave that it recommends Secretary General Ban Ki-moon open an independent investigation into the World Food Program there. It suggests that the program rebuild the food distribution system — which serves at least 2.5 million people — from scratch to break what it describes as a corrupt cartel of Somali distributors. In addition to the diversion of food aid, regional Somali authorities are collaborating with pirates who hijack ships along the lawless coast, the report says, and Somali government ministers have auctioned off diplomatic visas for trips to Europe to the highest bidder, some of whom may have been pirates or insurgents.

...

It singles out the World Food Program, the single largest aid agency in the crisis-wracked country, as particularly flawed. “Some humanitarian resources, notably food aid, have been diverted to military uses,” the report said. “A handful of Somali contractors for aid agencies have formed a cartel and become important power brokers — some of whom channel their profits — or the aid itself — directly to armed opposition groups.”

...

The report also charges that Somali officials are selling spots on trips to Europe and that many of the people who are presented as part of an official government entourage are actually pirates or members of militant groups. The report says that Somali officials use their connections to foreign governments to get visas and travel documents for people who would not otherwise be able to travel abroad and that many of these people then disappear into Europe and do not come back. “Somali ministers, members of parliament, diplomats and ‘freelance brokers’ have transformed access to foreign visas into a growth industry, matched possibly only by piracy, selling visas for $10-15,000 each,” the report said. The reports’ authors estimate that dozens, if not hundreds, of Somalis have gained access to Europe or beyond through this under-the-table visa business.

...

The report questions why the World Food Program would steer 80 percent of its transportation contracts for Somalia, worth about $200 million, to three Somali businessmen, especially when they are suspected of connections to Islamist insurgents. The report says that fraud is pervasive, with approximately 30 percent of aid skimmed by local partners and local World Food Program personnel, 10 percent by the ground transporters and 5 to 10 percent by the armed group in control of the area. That means as much as half of food never makes it to the people who desperately need it. In January, the American government halted tens of millions of dollars of aid shipments to southern Somalia because of fears of such diversions, and American officials believe that some of the aid may have fallen into the hands of the Shabab, the most militant of Somalia’s insurgent groups.

This is just atrocious. The UN needs to get its **** together and take care of this ASAP.
 
Re: Half of Food Aid to Somalia Is Diverted, Report Says

I thought this was well known given the UN history on this kind of thing --- remember all the money lost during the Bush administration that found itself in the hands of Russia? The scandals with the UN money being diverted to Kofi's son or cousin or some such nonsense of which nothing ever happened? The UN doesn't WANT to get it's **** together because the UN is corrupt and is used willingly as a tool to divert money, food, and resources to the highest bidder or to causes which the UN has interests. Am I saying the UN is supporting terrorism and extremism around the world? Damn straight. And we all know they're doing it with the kicker that we HOST the bastards right here out of New York City and give them diplomatic immunity and Secret Service escorts. If Al Qaeda was smart, (and maybe they've already done this) all they have to do is spend some money/time to get members into the UN and they'll be protected by their greatest enemy while they kick our asses.
 
Re: Half of Food Aid to Somalia Is Diverted, Report Says

What do you think brought us to Somalia in 1993? This was the exact reason.
 
Re: Half of Food Aid to Somalia Is Diverted, Report Says

I hope no one is going to pretend to be shocked by corruption in any part of the UN it's what they do.

Any look into the operations of the UN show glaring ineptness.

The Rwanda tragedy could have be avoided if Kofi Annan had allowed the UN troops un the Command of a Canadian General to stop it as it began.

Annan has never been forced to show cause for telling the General who at the time said he could end the violence, why he was told to stand down and not get involved.

Contractors and even so-called human rights charities are corrupt and have become money pits bent on dragging in huge amounts of money from people who honestly think they are helping solve problems when in fact they are making a few bastards rich at the top of the Charity ladders.

My surprise is that it's only half being diverted.

We need to reach out an slap the stew out of the UN as we through them out of Country and never fund or support this World corruption central again.

All of the aid we give should be done by way of our Military and given out by an honest aid organization like the Salvation Army and not one like the Red Cross or any group that is supported by the United waythat like the
red Cross eats way too much for paying huge salaries and provides limos or similar perks to fat cats who make around $200,000 a year. Now that's charity that begins at home.
 
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Re: Half of Food Aid to Somalia Is Diverted, Report Says

I find it a bit odd that at least two other groups were implicated...and yet the first one (and apparently only one) people jump on is the UN.

I am a fan of the UN IDEA, however I fully recognize the UN today is fraught with problems that need reworking. Sad thing is, we NEED the UN (Or a UN-like body) but there's no real way to insulate it against corruption.
 
Re: Half of Food Aid to Somalia Is Diverted, Report Says

I admit it... I'm anti UN and this is just another reason to stick a fork in it.
 
Re: Half of Food Aid to Somalia Is Diverted, Report Says

I admit it... I'm anti UN and this is just another reason to stick a fork in it.
I'm in favor of reform as much as anyone, but what do you suggest we to instead of the UN?
 
Re: Half of Food Aid to Somalia Is Diverted, Report Says

Its not so much corruption all the time, as it is sometimes a peace offering, probably in 20-30% of cases, if yah give a pirate or Militia organization a little bit of the cut, they will allow it to get to the people under their control, sometimes its a tit for tat horrible situation. But since no one else is helping, some in the WFP might see it as a nessecary evil. Better some people then none at all.
 
Re: Half of Food Aid to Somalia Is Diverted, Report Says

I find it a bit odd that at least two other groups were implicated...and yet the first one (and apparently only one) people jump on is the UN.

I'm not sure what you're referring to when you say "other groups." The World Food Program is the UN, so it seems perfectly reasonable to place the blame on the UN for the failures of one of its programs.
 
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