WFP Chief to visit projects and meet beneficiaries in Egypt and Syria

Cairo, 27 November 2007 – The Executive Director of the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP), Josette Sheeran, will travel to the Middle East this week for her first visit to the
region, where WFP has projects to create assets for the poorest and most vulnerable people in Egypt and to provide food assistance for tens of thousands of Iraqi refugees in Syria.

Sheeran will visit Egypt 29 November – 1 December and Syria from 1-3 December.

Egypt – In Egypt, WFP assists up to 396,000 people, especially women and children, mostly through projects to reclaim land and to help provide housing and education in the poorest parts
of the country – mainly Upper Egypt, Sinai and the Red Sea.

In Syria, the Executive Director will hold talks with senior officials and visit sites where WFP already distributes food assistance to more than 50,000 refugees from Iraq, with the numbers
expected to rise as the influx continues over the coming months.

Track record – Sheeran became the eleventh Executive Director of WFP in April 2007 . She brings to WFP a 20-year proven track record as a management leader with international experience
in diplomacy, government, foundations, economic capacity building, and business.

The Executive Director will hold a press conference in Damascus on 3 December.