7 December 2011 – The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) and the Italian energy company Enel announced today a new partnership to combat hunger and malnutrition while also reducing carbon emissions through the use of 'green’ stoves and solar panels.
The €8 million agreement was unveiled at the UN Climate Change Conference in Durban, South Africa, where Enel pledged its commitment to support WFP’s humanitarian and environmental protection programmes such as the Safe Access to Firewood and Alternative Energy in Humanitarian Settings (SAFE), which provides schools, community centres and poor households with high-efficiency cooking stoves to cook food rations distributed by WFP.
SAFE also protects women against violence during firewood collection and helps combat deforestation and carbon emissions by using less fuel.
WFP has already distributed 140,000 stoves in Sudan, Uganda, Sri Lanka and Haiti. Through the new partnership, Enel and WFP will develop a business model to generate carbon emission reduction credits by analyzing the use of 'green’ stoves.
Enel will also install solar panels to cut greenhouse gas emissions at UN humanitarian response sites used to store and handle emergency supplies in Italy, Panama, the United Arab Emirates and Ghana.
In addition, Enel Cuore, an independent, non-profit organization within the Enel Group, will support WFP’s activities in Latin America where the group is present.
The partnership is the result of a framework agreement for cooperation was signed in June 2011 by WFP Executive Director Josette Sheeran and Enel chief executive officer Fulvio Conti.
