On 27 November 2023, seven thousand tons of mineral fertilizer was shipped from the port of Riga to Zimbabwe, which was a donation to the UN World Food Programme initiative. It was the second shipment of about 200,000 tons of mineral fertilizers originating in Russia, owned by companies subject to European Union sanctions and stored in the territory of Latvia.
The UN World Food Programme plans to organise the next shipment of sanctioned mineral fertilizer from Latvia soon in order to provide support to countries the most in need of those products.
As reported earlier by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, on 6 December 2022, the Cabinet of Ministers decided to respond to the United Nations request to mitigate the negative consequences of the Russia’s war in Ukraine and to help address the food crisis in African and Latin American countries. The Cabinet of Ministers passed a decision to support the donation, through the UN World Food Programme, of mineral fertilisers owned by companies subject to EU sanctions. In the spring of 2023, Kenya was the first recipient of a mineral fertilizer donation sent as part of this initiative.
Latvia, together with its foreign partners and international organisations, continues to provide support to countries that have suffered as a result of the food crisis caused by Russia's war in Ukraine.