3.13.2008 - 10:04am ET

(CSRwire) WASHINGTON, March 13 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Friends of
the World Food Program today welcomed a $500,000 donation from Not On Our Watch, a humanitarian and advocacy organization co-founded by actors George Clooney, Don Cheadle, Matt Damon, Brad Pitt, producer Jerry Weintraub and civil rights lawyer David Pressman. The gift will provide critical support to the United Nations World Food Program's (WFP) Humanitarian Air Service (HAS) in Darfur, Sudan. This is the World Food Program's second donation from Not On Our Watch; in 2007, the organization granted $1 million dollars towards UN WFP-HAS.

WFP relies on helicopters to transport staff to food distribution sites in northern Sudan, primarily in Darfur. The agency's humanitarian air service has been operating in Sudan since 2004, at the onset of the Darfur crisis when emergency interventions were scaling up in response to the conflict. In 2007, WFP-HAS served almost 160,000 passengers across some 170 different agencies using a fleet of 24 aircrafts including 6 helicopters based in Darfur. With a monthly operating cost of $6.2 million ($4.2 million in Darfur alone), carryover funds will deplete before the end of March. All services will cease if contributions are not received on time and the merging of the southern operation will not commence as planned. WFP urgently needs to secure immediate funds and $12 million is required in Darfur to cover immediate needs from April to June.

"World Food Program planes and
helicopters deliver humanitarian workers and urgent supplies to nearly every aid organization working in Darfur," said George Clooney, a co-founder of Not On Our Watch. "This is a critical time for the program. Without immediate additional funding, humanitarian aid in the region will be crippled. We are proud to help ensure the survival of this lifesaving program and strongly encourage others to do the same. Protection of these victims should not fall solely in the hands of charitable organizations. Governments have a responsibility to help those who cannot defend themselves."

"We are grateful for the continued support from Not On Our Watch," said Karen Sendelback, President and CEO of Friends of the World Food Program. "Given the ever-increasing security constraints and operational challenges, the Humanitarian Air Service has never been more vital than now for all humanitarian agencies working in Darfur."

WFP needs $77 million in 2008 to sustain operations for some 180,000 passengers from 180 agencies in Sudan, of which almost 70 percent is for Darfur.

Not On Our Watch is a humanitarian organization that aims to stop and prevent mass atrocities around the world through advocacy and grant making. Its first campaign has been to support Darfur relief efforts and ensure the protection of civilians in the region.

The World Food Program is the world's largest humanitarian agency: this year, WFP plans to feed more than 70 million people in around 80 countries.

WFP's emergency food assistance to populations affected by conflict in Darfur aims to save lives, improve and sustain the nutritional status of vulnerable populations, and promote peace building. Additionally, WFP operations in Sudan play an important role in strengthening recovery and development.

For more information on Not On Our Watch, visit www.notonourwatchproject.org or email info@notonourwatchproject.org

Friends of the World Food Program (Friends of WFP) is a US-based non-profit organization dedicated to building support for the World Food Program (WFP) and other hunger relief efforts. WFP is the largest international food assistance organization in the world and the United Nations' frontline agency in the fight against hunger. For more information, visit www.friendsofwfp.org.