The secretary of the Pontifical Council Cor Unum, Monsignor Giampietro Dal Toso, spoke with L’Osservatore Romano last week and noted the donation. The aid went to five Kenya dioceses and six Ethiopian ones.
The Pope’s gift follows another sum sent in July.
Some 12.42 million people are suffering from famine along the Horn of Africa (in Somalia, Ethiopia, Eritrea and parts of Kenya as well as Uganda), according to Caritas.
Monsignor Dal Toso referred to the Pope’s aid as a «strong signal» for the international community.
He also described it as «a sign of the attention with which Benedict XVI follows the tragic situation in the region and his concern for those martyred populations.»
The monsignor noted that the Holy Father was one of the first to draw international attention to the situation, with an appeal he made July 17.
This past Sunday, after praying the midday Angelus, Benedict XVI again encouraged «international mobilization to send help immediately to our brothers and sisters, who have already suffered so much, among whom are so many children.»
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On the Net:
To send aid through Caritas: www.caritas.org/activities/emergencies/food_crisis_in_east_africa.html
