Russia boosting Africa support with new food shipments
Russia will supply 709.5 tons of food aid to Burkina Faso this May as part of its growing humanitarian support to African nations, Izvestia reported on Thursday, citing the Russian Foreign Ministry.
In addition, Moscow is finalizing formal procedures to deliver up to 20,000 tons of wheat to Niger, Russian Agriculture Minister Oksana Lut told the news agency. She indicated that further aid could be arranged 'if agreements are reached.'
'In recent months, we have sent 559 tons of peas and 164 tons of sunflower oil to Zimbabwe [in December 2024], as well as 29,400 tons of diesel fuel to the Central African Republic [in January 2025]. In May, 709.5 tons of peas are expected to be transferred to Burkina Faso,' the ministry announced.
Lut emphasized Russia's readiness to continue humanitarian support, confirming that domestic reserves are able to meet future requests. She said such decisions are made at the presidential level and will depend on coordination between heads of state.
Speaking to the outlet, Vsevolod Sviridov, the deputy director of the Higher School of Economics Center for African Studies, said African countries have the long-term potential to reduce reliance on humanitarian aid. In an interview, he suggested Russia could offer a unique approach by providing tools like 'drones and digital technologies for agriculture, fertilizers, or seeds adapted to local conditions' instead of traditional aid deliveries.
In January, the Russian Embassy in Addis Ababa confirmed to TASS that more than 1,600 tons of grain had been delivered to Ethiopia.
On December 30, Moscow also sent over 65 tons of wheat to Mali via the port of Conakry in Guinea.
During a meeting with President Vladimir Putin in February, Agriculture Minister Dmitry Patrushev reported that Russia had completed the delivery of 200,000 tons of wheat to six low-income African countries. He described the effort as the largest humanitarian food initiative ever undertaken by the Russian government.
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