Sudan needs some 800,000 tons in food assistance in 2006, despite a good harvest in the country last year, two UN food agencies said in a report released on Friday.

The report, issued by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Food Program, said some 6.7 million Sudanese are exposed to malnutrition, and the food aid will be mainly allocated to more than 2 million internally displaced people and nearly 3.5 million people in Darfur as well as in southern, central and eastern areas of the country.

Sudan's overall cereal production for 2005-06 amounted to 5.3 million tons, 55 percent higher than that of 2004-05, and 17 percent above the average of the previous five years. Rainfall and the improved security contributed to the harvest, the agencies said.

However, millions of people still lacked access to food because of war and poor infrastructure, among other factors, the report stated.

The report was issued after the two agencies, both based in Rome, had conducted a mission to assess the food situation in Sudan late last year.

FAO appealed for 40 million U.S. dollars in aid for the country last month, saying supporting agricultural development is crucial to ensuring lasting peace. After 20 years of civil war, a peace accord was finally reached in Sudan last year.

Source: Xinhua