The United Nations World Food Program [WFP] has long been known for inefficiency. Contrary to what some UN-opponents may, the trouble is often not within the United Nations.

Donor nations, for instance, often make a big deal of their contributions as a reflection of their pure altruism. In reality, nations contributing food are part of a cynical gambit that enriches domestic farms. The United States, for example, will buy food from American farmers, whom are a powerful lobby group and obviously profit from such a scheme, and then donate that food to starving Africans. So far so good, right?

Yes, if only it was just that. But very often the food donated is food too damaged for the American supermarket. A former worker with the WFP once told me that they would receive bags of rice filled with ants and worms.

Receiving countries, often awful dictatorships who have created the conditions of starvation in their countries through ineptitude, are no better and often far worse.

The Times of London reports that hundreds of millions of UN food intended for starving Somalies have been stolen and are being sold for profit in the streets of Mogadishu. The food was taken from a camp that was a set-up. Such cynicism is beyond the pale.

Many of the sacks for sale are marked: “A gift from the American people”, with the US government’s aid agency, USAID, providing $274 million last year in food and in humanitarian assistance for Somalia.

The United Nations’ director in Somalia insists that food selling is a minor problem, however.