New York. – As Senator Barack Obama became the new United States President-Elect on November 4th, a bipartisan team of 116 Members of Congress rushed on November 5th a letter to the Obama’s transition team asking that he initiates a White House-based and – led government-wide comprehensive strategy to address international hunger and food security issues. Click here to download letter.

Adding to the effort led by the representatives, Batey Relief Alliance’s CEO, Ulrick Gaillard travels to Washington DC on November 13th to discuss with high level government and agency officials the same issues that continue to plague vulnerable populations in the Caribbean, particularly those living in rural sugar cane plantations batey communities of the Dominican Republic and border regions of Haiti.

Since 2007, the Batey Relief Alliance started an International Food Relief Program, as part of the USAID’s Food for Peace program, delivering each year 75 metric tons of dehydrated food product to 5,000 impoverished children and their families living in the bateyes, urban barrios, and rural slums of the Dominican Republic. Another 55,000 children receive multivitamins and antiparasitic medicines. “The IFRP program helps raise the capacity of families to produce for themselves and their communities,” said Gaillard.

Gaillard added, however, that more funding is needed not only to continue the food aid program in the Dominican Republic, but also to expand into Haiti—the poorest country in the western hemisphere, with over 80% of the population living on less than two U.S dollars a day.