The UK Secretary of State for Development, the Right Honourable Hilary Benn MP, will today visit Ethiopia. During his stay, Mr Benn is scheduled to visit a field project to look at the impact that the Productive Safety Nets Programme is having on members of the Ethiopian community.

The Productive Safety Nets Programme (PSNP) is the mechanism developed by the Ethiopian government to encourage the move from food aid to more development-orientated investment. It aims to reduce vulnerability and attain food security for approximately five million food insecure people by 2009 through replacing emergency responses to chronic food insecurity with a multi-annual, predicable resource. By providing cash transfers rather than food, the programme will enable smallholders to increase consumption and investment levels and stimulate the further development of rural markets.

The Secretary of State is also scheduled to meet with Prime Minister Meles Zenawi and representatives of the opposition.

ENDS