In an unprecedented move, Pope Francis has symbolically donated €25,000 to FAO to help people facing food insecurity and famine in East Africa, FAO announced today. A letter written to FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva by Mgr. Fernando Chica Arellano, Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the UN food agencies in Rome, explains that the funds are “a symbolic contribution to an FAO programme that provides seeds to rural families in areas affected by the combined effects of conflicts and drought”. Pope Francis’ gesture stemmed from a pledge he made in a message to the FAO’s Conference on 3 July 2017 and was “inspired also by the desire to encourage Governments”, Mgr. Chica wrote in the letter. Famine was declared in parts of South Sudan in February and while the situation has slightly improved after a significant scaling up in the humanitarian response, some 6 million people in the country are still struggling to find enough food every day. The number of people in need of humanitarian assistance in five other East African countries – Somalia, Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda – is currently estimated at about 16 million, which marks an increase of about 30% since late 2016. Pope Francis will visit FAO’s headquarters on 16 October to mark World Food Day on the theme: “Change the future of migration. Invest in food security and rural development”.